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A 


SELECTIONS    FROM 
DEFOE'S   MINOR   NOVELS 


EDITED    BY 


GEORGE    SAINTSBURY 


LfB^ 


or  TNe 


UNIVERglTl 


LONDON 
PERCIVAL    AND    CO. 

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CONTENTS 


PAGE 


I.  Captain  Singleton 

(i)  Across  Africa         '......  i 

(2)  William  the  Quaker        .....         92 

II.  Moll  Flanders 

(i)  A  Highwayman  Husband        .         .         .         -135 
(2)  Moll's  Thieveries    .         .         .         .         .         .162 

III.  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

( 1 )  The  Passage  of  the  Lech         ....       203 

(2)  The  Retreat  from  Marston  Moor     .         ..        .       218 

IV.  Colonel  Jack 

(i)  Jack's  Apprenticeship     ......       243 

(2)  A  Peaceful  Colonel 301 

(3)  Jack's  Last  Courtship     .         .         .         .         .311 

V.  Roxana 

(i)  The  Storm 320 


INTRODUCTION 

Although  Defoe  has  never  been  edited  as  a  whole, 
and  is,  unless  a  great  change  takes  place  in  the 
habits  of  English  book-buyers,  very  unlikely  to  be 
so,  he  has  had  his  fair  share  of  partial  collections  in 
greater  or  smaller  extent.  I  am  not  aware,  however, 
of  any  attempt  to  deal  with  him  in  the  way  here 
proposed.  The  nearest  thing  to  it  is  the  rather 
abundant  bundle  of  extracts  given  in  Mr.  Arber's 
English  Garner^  vol.  vii.,  in  which  the  selections 
are  wholly  political.  Of  such  matter  I  have  myself 
included  nothing,  the  ever  famous  Shortest  Way 
being  reprinted  in  another  volume  of  this  series.  The 
whole  of  my  excerpts  here  will  be  from  the  works  of 
fiction  by  which  Defoe  gained  his  greatest  popularity, 
and  in  which  his  unrivalled  talents  for  description 
and  narrative  appear.  A  selection  from  the  lighter 
passages  of  his  miscellaneous  work  may  follow. 


viii  hitroduction 

Almost  all  Defoe's  books  are  particularly  susceptible 
of  such  treatment,  because  of  their  author's  extra- 
ordinary fluency,  and  of  his  tendency  to  mix  very 
dull  and  tedious  passages  with  the  most  brilliant  of 
his  'lies  like  truth,'  or  of  his  'dressings  up  of  others' 
matter  in  his  own  masterly  though  seeming-care- 
less form.  It  may,  indeed,  be  admitted  that  his 
besetting  defects  are  rarely  absent  in  any  passage  of 
considerable  length,  and  in  a  selection  it  is  at  least 
possible  to  select  those  passages  in  which  they  are 
accompanied  by  satisfactory  presentation  of  his  merits. 
In  the  minor  novels  especially  the  presentation  of  the 
best  passages  will  enable  the  reader,  better  than  any- 
thing else,  to  reconcile  or  to  decide  between  the  lofty 
eulogy  of  Charles  Lamb  and  the  exaggerated  depre- 
ciation of  Macaulay.  For  there  is  little  doubt  that 
Lamb,  who  always  went  to  the  best  things,  was 
attracted  by  these  ;  while  Macaulay,  a  faithful  and 
omnivorous  reader,  was  disgusted  by  the  quantity  of 
chaff  which  Defoe  made  him  swallow  with  his  bread. 
Here  the  chaff  is,  I  trust,  pretty  well  winnowed  out,» 
as  far  as  its  ubiquity  makes  it  possible. 

Defoe's  life  and  writings  have  been  the  subject 
of  a  very  great  deal  of  discussion ;  the  life,  though 
not    exactly    eventful,    being    interesting    and    rather  i 


Introduction  ix 

unusually  well  known  in   detail,   though  puzzling  in 
some  particulars ;  the  writings  possessing,  in  addition 
to  the  interest  of  their  vast  volume  and  the  unusual 
variety  of  their  certain  contents,  the  attraction  of  a 
great  appendix  of  doubtful  productions.     Daniel  Foe, 
or  Defoe  (for  his  father,  like  De  Quincey's,  did  not 
use  the  prefix),   was  apparently  of  fair  middle -class 
rank,  perhaps   yeomanly   in   origin,   certainly   of  the 
trading  class  in  his  own  day.      He  was  J)om  in  i66i 
in  the  parish  of  St.  Giles's,  Cripplegate,  was  brought 
up  a  Dissenter,  and  privately  but  pretty  well  educated. 
He  was  just  of  age  when  he  made  his  appearance  as 
an  author  with  a  satire  on  Roger  L'Estrange  called 
Speculum    Crapegownorum,  and   he  went   on   wxiiing-, 
on  almost  every^conrpivnble,  subject,  and  in  almost 
every  conceivable  form,  for  the  rest  of  his  life,  whjrh 
was  no  short  one.     No  two  authorities  agree  on  the 
exact  list  of  his  works  j  and  therefore  it  is  impossible 
to  estimate  their  quantity  exactly.     And  it  may  be 
safely  said  that  no  one,  save  contributors  to  the  daily 
press  for  the   greater   part   of  a  long  life,   has  ever 
written  so  much  as  Defoe.     And  he  was  much  else 
besides   a  mere   shedder  of  ink.     He  joined  Mon- 
mouth's insurrection  in  1685,  but  escaped  Kirke  and 
Jeffreys,  as  well  as  Feversham  and  Churchill,  and  soon 


X  Introduction 

afterwards  set  up  as  a  hosier  or  hose-factor.  He  tried 
the  foreign,  especially  the  Peninsular,  trade  a  little,  but 
had  to  compound  with  his  creditors,  and  to  abscond 
for  some  time.  Then  he  became  partner  in  and  manager 
of  some  tile  and  brick  works  at  Tilbury — an  enter- 
prise which  was  ruined  by  his  pillorying  and  imprison- 
ment for  the  Shortest  Way.  After  his  release  his 
occupations,  which  had  always  been  partly,  became 
almost  entirely  literary,  a  practical  connection  with 
politics  being  also  opened  by  his  becoming  an  agent 
of  Harley's.  During  the  rest  of  his  life  he  was  always 
more  or  less  a  political  journalist,  and  some  of  his 
engagements  in  that  way  are  not  over  creditable.  He 
had  from  time  to  time  fresh  troubles  about  his  old  or 
new  debts.  One  of  his  most  respectable  employments 
was  the  advocacy  of  the  Union  with  Scotland,  for 
which  purpose  he  both  wrote  and  travelled,  residing 
in  the  north  for  a  considerable  time.  But  he  never 
quite  gave  up  his  fancy  for  dabbling  in  business.  In 
T  7 1 2  he  made  a  fresh  venture  of  some  sort,  of  which 
little  is  known,  but  which  seems  to  have  had  some  re- 
ference to  his  old  connection  with  the  clothing  trade ;  I 
and  ten  years  later  he  speculated  in  land.  Although 
^£emingly_wi^l1-tn»do  hejvasney^er-  far  from-prison, 
and  sometimes  in  it ;  and  though  he  had  a  handsome 


Introduction  xi 

house  at  Stoke  Newington,  he  died,  apparently  in 
distress,  on  24th  April  1731,  lodging  in  the  same 
parish  where  he  was  born. 

A  mere  catalogue,  without  comment,  of  the  certain 
work  of  Defoe  would  occupy  far  more  space  than  is 
available  for  this  whole  introduction,  and  would  be 
of  very  little  service  for  the  purpose  of  this  volume. 
It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  he  wrot^_gj^rything: — zprose 
and  verse,  novels,  histories,  religious  and  moral 
treatises,  sketches  of  manners,  works  on  political 
economy,  periodicals,  tours,  memoirs,  pamphlets, 
lampoons,  essays,  sermons.  He  achieved  the  feat, 
extraordinary  even  now,  and  still  more  extraordinary 
then,  of  starting  and  keeping  up  with  his  single  pen 
for  nine  years  a  tri- weekly  newspaper,  entitled  A 
Review  of  the  State  of  the  British  Nation^  without 
allowing  this  to  stop,  or  greatly  to  decrease,  the  vol- 
ume of  his  miscellaneous  production.  Imprisonment, 
hiding,  wandering,  business  of  all  kinds,  had  no  effect 
on  the  quantity  of  his  writing,  and  apparently  not 
much  upon  its  quality.  And  last,  but  not  least,  his 
most  imaginative  as  well  as  his  most  masterly  works 
were  the  product  of  his  declining  days,  Robinson 
Crusoe^  with  the  satellites  here  represented,  all  dating 
from  the  last  ten  or  twelve  years  of  his  life. 


xii  Introduction 

This  is,  however,  more  surprising  at  first  sight  than 
on  examination,  for  the  distinguishing  and  effectual 
quality  of  Defoe's  work  is  the  same  everywhere — a 
point  in  which  he  differs  from  almost  every  other 
writer.  No  one  perhaps  with  such  an  entire  absence 
of  what  is  commonly  called  literary  quality  of  mind 
has  achieved  such  a  peculiar  literary  character  of 
writing;  and  the  perfection  of  his  expression  is  as 
much  the  secret  of  his  popularity  with  purely  literary 
critics  as  the  peculiar  character  of  his  thought  and 
sympathies  is  the  secret  of  his  vogue  with  the  un- 
literary.  There  is  in  Defoe  absolutely  nothing  high- 
flying or  transcendental.  His  verse  is  exceedingly 
bad — its  badness  being  sufficiently  accounted  for  by 
the  fact  that  his  thought  was  prosaic  in  kind,  and 
that,  unlike  some  other  writers  who  share  this  disad- 
vantage with  him,  he  had  neither  time  nor  fancy  for 
supplying  the  deficiency  by  elaborate  attention  to  form. 
His  prose  is  nearly,  if  not  quite,  of  the  first  class,  because 
the  criterion  of  the  excellence  of  prose  is  the  direct  and 
faithful  transfer,  with  only  a  certain  varnish  of  art,  of 
the  purpose,  sentiment,  information,  idea,  or  what 
not  of  the  writer.  In  his  faculty  of  representation 
Defoe  was  a  consummate  no  less  than  an  unique 
artist,  accomplishing  the  *  disrealising,'  as  it  has  been 


Introduction  xiii 

called,  which  is  necessary  to  art,  with  such  a  marvel- 
lous and  unerring  economy  of  means  that  he  has 
sometimes  been  taken  for  a  mere  Realist.  His  work, 
generally  speaking,  has  the  character  as  nearly  as 
possible  of  spoken  rather  than  of  written  style, — the 
nature,  the  freshness,  the  spirit,  the  unadorned  grace 
of  the  best  conversation  of  a  certain  kind.  And  this 
accounts  to  a  certain  extent  for  his  wonderful  fertility. 
But  this  is  only  half  the  mystery ;  the  other  half  lies 
in  the  immense  variety,  combined  with  the  peculiar 
pitch,  of  his  thoughts  and  interests.  He  is,  as  it 
were,  sublimated  commonplace ;  he  is  the  eternal 
and  consummate  example  of  the  truth,  constantly 
formulated  by  critics,  that  what  pleases  is  that  which 
is  just  above — not  too  insolently  or  conspicuously 
above — the  mind  and  taste  of  the  reader.  Defoe  had 
a  va'st  number  of  interests,  but  he  never  urged  any  to 
that  pitch  of  crotchet,  of  engoue??ient,  which  offends. 
He  had  an  abundance  of  plain  common-sense,  and 
could  argue  very  well  indeed ;  but  he  was  never 
seduced  by  his  logical  faculty  into  paradox,  into 
subtlety,  into  any  of  those  abuses  of  syllogism  which 
irritate  and  perplex  the  ordinary  reader.  He  had  an 
abundant  and  prolific  fancy,  which  never  by  any 
chance    became    fantastic ;    which    seldom,    indeed, 


xiv  Introduction 

reached  even  the  borders  of  imagination  proper.  He 
was  a  sincerely  religious  man — one  who  could  take 
persecution  for  conscience'  sake ;  but  he  was  not  in 
the  least  what  his  own  day  called  an  enthusiast,  and 
could  perfectly  well  understand  and  practise  trans- 
action and  compromise.  He  was  a  good  plain 
moralist,  sturdy  and  English  in  his  morality ;  but  he 
was  quite  able  to  make  both  ends  meet,  and  was  not 
at  all  troubled  by  any  eccentric  point  of  honour. 
In  fact  he  was  the  shrewd,  fairly  -  educated,  prosaic, 
Phihstine,  middle-class  Englishman  in  quintessence, — 
endowed,  moreover,  with  the  literary  faculty  which, 
while  it  is  commonly  supposed  to  be  denied  to  the 
English  race  in  general,  has  in  individuals  given  us 
a  literature  second  to  none  of  ancient  or  modern 
times.  His  Philistinism  might  at  times  disgust  if  it 
were  not  expressed  with  such  genial  simplicity — 
for  it  is  a  pity  that  we  have  left  the  adjective  of 
genius  in  its  proper  sense  to  Germans  and  French- 
men, who  certainly  have  no  better  right  to  it  than 
ourselves.  His  garrulity  might  offend  if  it  were 
not  for  its  astonishing  combination  of  truth  to  nature 
and  adaptation  to  artistic  ends.  His  prolixity  might 
weary  if  it  were  not  that  it  is  entirely  free  from 
any  combination  of  pretentiousness.     As  it  is,  he  is 


l7itroductio7i  xv 

literally,  as  I  have  called  him,  unique.  No  language 
has  his  fellow ;  and  it  is  excessively  improbable  that 
either  this  or  any  other  language  will  ever  produce 
one.  The  adjustment  of  limitations  and  endowments 
was  made  once  and  for  all. 

It  was,  as  has  been  said,  in  the  last— twelve  years 
of  Defoe's  life  that  the  extraordinary  series  of  fictions 
here  laid  under  contribution  was  published.  From 
the  first  and  greatest  of  them,  which  appeared  in 
1 7 19  and  the  years  immediately  following,  nothing 
has  been  taken ;  for  Robinson  Crusoe  is  not  so 
much  in  every  one's  hands  as  in  every  one's  head, 
and  woe  to  England  when  it  ceases  to  be  so.  The 
second  in  order  (1720)  was  Captain  Singleton.  1722 
saw  not  merely  Moll  Flanders^  the  Memoirs  of  a 
Cavalier^  and  Colonel  Jack,  but  the  well-known 
Journal  of  the  Plague-  Year^  and  the  very  characteristic 
Religious  Courtship — perhaps  the  most  extraordinary 
turn-out  for  a  single  twelvemonth  that  any  man  of 
letters  has  to  his  name  in  the  bibliography  of  the  world. 
Roxana  appeared  in  1724,  and  the  Neiu  Voyage 
round  the  World  next  year.  From  this  last  I  have 
taken  nothing,  for  it  has  less  personal  interest  than 
any  other,  and  may  not  improbably  be  a  mere  working 
up  of  some  actual  voyage  of  the  half-trading,  half- 


xvi  Introduction 

piratical  character  then  common.  Its  most  striking 
passages,  deaHng  with  mutiny  and  the  like,  bear  a 
curious  resemblance  to  others  much  more  dramati- 
cally worked  up  in  Robi7ison  Crusoe,  and  may  very 
possibly  represent  the  originals  of  these.  Of  the 
other  five — Captain  Singleton,  Moll  Flatiders,  the 
Me77ioirs  of  a  Cavalier,  Colonel  Jack,  and  Roxana 
— extracts  will  be  found.  Susceptibilities  which 
deserve  respect,  if  not  full  sympathy,  have  required 
a  very  little  "  editing "  here  and  there,  and  have 
still  more  conditioned  the  selection;  but  I  think 
it  will  be  found  fairly  representative  for  general 
reading.  Like  a  great  deal  else  in  Defoe's  work, 
these  novels  are  to  some  extent  literary  puzzles ;  and 
it  cannot  be  said  to  be  exactly  certain  in  even  a 
single  case  how  much  of  them  is  frank  and  imagina- 
tive invention,  how  much  dexterous  vamping  and 
setting  off  of  matter  previously  existing  and  represent- 
ing actual  experience.  What  is  certain,  however,  is 
that,  as  in  the  somewhat  similar  case  of  Dumas,  there 
is  such  a  personal,  singular,  and  uniform  touch  visible 
in  all  the  best  passages  of  them,  that  a  wise  critic  will 
be  very  little  concerned  with  questions  of  origin. 
What  we  admire  in  them  is  beyond  all  question 
Defoe's,  and  no  one  else's — the  marvellous  reality  of 


Introduction      >  xvii 

touch,  the  strange  idiosyncrasy  of  character,  the  in- 
variable fideHty  to  one  scheme  a.nd  one  sphere  of  Hfe,^, 
not  very  lofty,  not  in  the  least  romantic,  but  possible, 
literary,  and  true. 

Those  who  are  not  satisfied  with  these  generalities 
(between  which  and  an  impossible  excursion  into 
detail  there  is  no  third  way)  may  be  invited  to  con- 
sult my  own  article  in  the  ninth  edition  of  the  Ency- 
clopedia Brifannica,  my  friend  Mr.  Minto's  volume  in 
the  English  Men  of  Letters,  or,  if  they  wish  to  go  still 
further  into  the  matter,  the  biographies  of  Wilson, 
Chadwick,  and  Lee,  and  that  prefixed  to  the  younger 
Hazlitt's  edition  of  part  of  the  works.  Of  the  most 
attractive  portion  of  those  works  this  little  volume 
will,  I  think,  give  a  sample  not  ungrateful  to  the  taste, 
and  hardly  to  be  obtained  otherwise  except  by  loading 
the  shelves  with  cumbrous  volumes;  yet  if  it  sends  any 
reader  to  those  volumes  themselves  I  shall  be  even 
better  pleased  than  if  he  remains  satisfied  with  what 
I  have  given. 


^4L  iFOR^i^^ 


L— 'CAPTAIN  SINGLETON' 

{The  interest  of  Captain  Singleton,  which  is  con- 
siderable^ is  twofold.  One  part  lies  in  the  remarkable 
account  of  the  journey  across  Africa.,  which  Singleton 
executes  with  his  comrades  from  Mozambique  to  Lower 
Guijiea,  and  which,  long  thought  to  be  a  mere  voyage 
de  fantaisie,  has  been  seen  {since  Central  Africa  has 
.  bsen  in  the  last  quarter  of  a  century  explored)  to  be  so 
much  more  close  to  the  truth  than  the  notions  on  the 
subject  prevalent  even  in  our  own  day,  that  it  is  thought 
Defoe  must  have  got  at  the  accounts,  or  at  least  the 
maps,  of  some  Portuguese  traveller.  From  this  part  I 
take  my  earlier  excerpt,  which  wants  little  explanation. 
Singletoti,  a  foundling,  after  various  adventures  by  sea 
i?t  his  early  youth,  is,  tvith  others,  marooned  for  mutiny 
froi7i  a  Portuguese  ship  in  Madagascar.  They  build  a 
vessel,  make  for  the  mainland,  and  then  cross  it.  They 
fight  their  way  through  the  coast  fi'inge,  capturing  a 
''  black  prince,''  who  goes  with  them,  and  using  pagazis, 
or  negro  carriers,   like  all  African   travellers,  with  a 

B 


2  Defoe's  Mi?ior  Novels 

few  buffaloes  to  help.       They  have  just  had  a  sharp 
fight) 

From  this  part  of  the  country  we  went  on  for 
about  fifteen  days,  and  then  found  ourselves  obliged 
to  march  up  a  high  ridge  of  mountains,  frightful  to 
behold,  and  the  first  of  the  kind  that  we  met  with ; 
and  having  no  guide  but  our  little  pocket-compass, 
we  had  no  advantage  of  information  as  to  which  was 
the  best  or  the  worst  way,  but  were  obliged  to  choose 
by  what  we  saw,  and  shift  as  well  as  we  could.  We 
met  with  several  nations  of  wild  and  naked  people  in 
the  plain  country  before  we  came  to  those  hills ;  and 
we  found  them  much  more  tractable  and  friendly  than 
those  devils  we  had  been  forced  to  fight  with;  and 
though  we  could  learn  little  from  these  people,  yet  we 
understood,  by  the  signs  they  made,  that  there  was  a 
vast  desert  beyond  those  hills,  and,  as  our  negroes 
called  them,  much  lion,  much  spotted  cat  (so  they 
calledrthe  leopard) ;  and  they  signed  to  us  also  that 
we  must  carry  water  with  us.  At  the  last  of  these 
nations,  we  furnished  ourselves  with  as  much  provi- 
sions as  we  could  possibly  carry,  not  knowing  what 
we  had  to  suffer,  or  what  length  we  had  to  go ;  and 
to  make  our  way  as  familiar  to  us  as  possible,  I  pro- 
posed, that  of  the  last  inhabitants  we  could  find,  we 
should  make  some  prisoners,  and  carry  them  with  us 
for  guides,  over  the  desert,  and  to  assist  us  in  carrying 


Captain  Singleton  3 

provision,  and  perhaps  in  getting  it  too.  The  advice 
was  too  necessary  to  be  slighted ;  so,  finding  by  our 
dumb  signs  to  the  inhabitants  that  there  were  some 
people  that  dwelt  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  on  the 
other  side,  before  we  came  to  the  desert  itself,  we 
resolved  to  furnish  ourselves  with  guides,  by  fair 
means  or  foul. 

Here,  by  a  moderate  computation,  we  concluded 
ourselves  seven  hundred  miles  from  the  sea-coast, 
where  we  began.  Our  black  prince  was  this  day  set 
free  from  the  sling  his  arm  hung  in,  our  surgeon 
having  perfectly  restored  it,  and  he  showed  it  to  his 
own  countrymen  quite  well,  which  made  them  greatly 
wonder.  Also  our  two  negroes  began  to  recover,  and 
their  wounds  to  heal  apace,  for  our  surgeon  was  very 
skilful  in  managing  their  cure. 

Having,  with  infinite  labour,  mounted  these  hills, 
and  coming  to  a  view  of  the  country  beyond  them,  it 
was  indeed  enough  to  astonish  as  stout  a  heart  as 
ever  was  created.  It  was  a  vast  hiowling^  wilderness, 
not  a  tree,  a  river,  or  a  green  thing  to  be  seen ;  for 
as  far  as  the  eye  could  look,  nothing  but  a  scalding 
sand,  which,  as  the  wind  blew,  drove  about  in  clouds, 
enough  to  overwhelm  man  and  beast :  nor  could  we 
see  any  end  of  it,  either  before  us,  which  was  our  way, 
or  to  the  right  hand  or  left :  so  that  truly  our  men 
began  to  be  discouraged,  and  talked  of  going  back 
again ;  nor  could  we,  indeed,  think  of  venturing  over 


4  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

such  a  horrid  place  as  that  before  us,  in  which  we 
saw  nothing  but  present  death. 

I  was  as  much  affected  at  the  sight  as  any  of  them; 
but,  for  all  that,  I  could  not  bear  the  thoughts  of 
going  back  again.  I  told  them  we  had  marched 
seven  hundred  miles  of  our  way,  and  it  would  be 
worse  than  death  to  think  of  going  back  again  \  and 
that,  if  they  thought  the  desert  was  not  passable,  I 
thought  we  should  rather  change  our  course,  and 
travel  south  till  we  came  to  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
or  north  to  the  country  that  lay  along  the  Nile,  where, 
perhaps,  we  might  find  some  way  or  other  over  to  the 
west  sea ;  for  sure  all  Africa  was  not  a  desert. 

Our  gunner,  who,  as  I  said  before,  was  our  guide, 
as  to  the  situation  of  places,  told  us  that  he  could 
not  tell  what  to  say  to  going  for  the  Cape ;  for  it  was 
a  monstrous  length,  being,  from  the  place  where  we 
now  were,  not  less  than  fifteen  hundred  miles ;  and, 
by  his  account,  we  were  now  come  a  third  part  of  the 
way  to  the  coast  of  Angola,  where  we  should  meet 
with  the  western  ocean,  and  find  ways  enough  for  our 
escape  home.  On  the  other  hand,  he  assured  us, 
and  showed  us  a  map  of  it,  that  if  we  went  northward, 
the  western  shore  of  Africa  w^ent  out  into  the  sea 
above  a  thousand  miles  west ;  so  that  we  should  have 
so  much,  and  more  land  to  travel  afterwards ;  which 
land  might,  for  aught  we  knew,  be  as  wild,  barren, 
and  desert  as  this.     And  therefore,  upon  the  whole, 


Captain  Singleton  5 

he  proposed  that  we  should  attempt  this  desert,  and 
perhaps  we  should  not  find  it  so  long  as  we  feared ; 
and,  however,  he  proposed  that  we  should  see  how 
far  our  provisions  would  carry  us,  and,  in  particular, 
our  water;  and  that  we  should  venture  no  farther 
than  half  so  far  as  our  water  would  last ;  and  if  we 
found  no  end  of  the  desert  we  might  come  safely 
back  again. 

This  advice  was  so  seasonable  that  all  approved  of 
it ;  and,  accordingly,  we  calculated  that  we  were  able 
to  carry  provisions  for  forty-two  days,  but  that  we 
could  not  carry  water  for  above  twenty  days,  though 
we  were  to  suppose  it  to  stink  too  before  that  time 
expired.    So  that  we  concluded  that,  if  we  did  not  come 

j  at  some  water  in  ten  days'  time,  we  would  return  ;  but 
if  we  found  a  supply  of  water,  we  could  then  travel 

j  twenty-one  days,  and,  if  we  saw  no  end  of  the  wilder- 

j  ness  in  that  time,  we  would  return  also. 

With  this  regulation  of  our  measures,  we  descended 

:  the  mountains,  and  it  was  the  second  day  before  we 
quite   reached   the    plain,  where,   however,  to    make 

I  us  amends,  we  found  a  fine  little  rivulet  of  very  good 

'  water,  abundance  of  deer,  a  sort  of  creature  like  a 

'l  hare,  but  not  so  nimble,  and  whose  flesh  we  found 
very  agreeable ;  but  we  were  deceived  in  our  intelli- 
gence, for  we  found  no  people ;  so  we  got  no  more 
prisoners  to  assist  us  in  carrying  our  baggage. 

The  infinite  number  of  deer,  and  other  creatures 


6  Defoe's  Minor  Novels  \ 

which  we  saw  here,  we  found  was  occasioned  by  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  waste  or  desert,  from  whence 
they  retired  hither  for  food  and  refreshment.  We 
stored  ourselves  here  with  flesh  and  roots  of  divers 
kinds,  which  our  negroes  understood  better  than  we, 
and  which  served  us  for  bread,  and  with  as  much 
water  as  (by  the  allowance  of  a  quart  a  day  to  a  man 
for  our  negroes,  and  three  pints  a  day  a  man  for  our- 
selves, and  three  quarts  a  day  each  for  our  buffaloes) 
would  serve  us  twenty  days ;  and  thus  loaden  for  a 
long  miserable  march,  we  set  forwards,  being  all  sound  1 
in  health,  and  very  cheerful,  but  not  alike  strong  for 
so  great  a  fatigue,  and,  which  was  our  grievance,  were 
without  a  guide. 

In  the  very  first  entrance  of  the  waste  we  were 
exceedingly  discouraged ;  for  we  found  the  sand  so 
deep,  and  it  scalded  our  feet  so  much  with  the  heat, 
that,  after  we  had,  as  I  may  call  it,  waded  rather 
than  walked  through  it  about  seven  or  eight  miles, 
we  were  all  heartily  tired  and  faint — even  the  very 
negroes  lay  down  and  panted,  like  creatures  that  had 
been  pushed  beyond  their  strength. 

Here  we  found  the  difference  of  lodging  greatly 
injurious  to  us,  for,  as  before,  we  always  made  us  huts 
to  sleep  under,  which  covered  us  from  the  night  air, 
which  is  particularly  unwholesome  in  those  hot  coun- 
tries ;  but  we  had  here  no  shelter,  no  lodging,  after  so 
•hard  a  march,  for  here  were  no  trees — no,  not  a  shrub 


Captain  Singleton  7 

near  us — and,  which  was  still  more  frightful,  towards 
night  we  began  to  hear  the  wolves  howl,  the  lions 
bellow,  and  a  great  many  wild  asses  braying,  and 
other  ugly  noises,  which  we  did  not  understand. 

Upon  this  we  reflected  upon  our   indiscretion — 
that  w^e  had  not,  at  least,  brought  poles  or  stakes  in 
our  hands,   with  which  we   might   have,  as   it  were, 
palisadoed  ourselves  in  for  the  night,  and  so  we  might 
have  slept  secure,  whatever  other  inconveniences  we 
suffered.      However,  we  found  a  way  at  last,  to  relieve 
ourselves  a  little.      For,  first,  we  set  up  the  lances  and 
bows  we  had,  and  endeavoured  to  bring  the  tops  of 
them  as  near  to  one  another  as  we  could,  and  so  hung 
our  coats  on  the  top  of  them,  which  made  us  a  kind 
of  sorry  tent.     The  leopard's  skin,  and  a  few  other 
skins   we    had    put    together,    made    us    a    tolerable 
covering,  and  thus  we  lay  down  to  sleep,  and  slept 
very  heartily  too  for  the  first  night,  setting,  however, 
a  good  watch,  being  two  of  our  own  men  with  their 
fusees,  whom  we  relieved  in  an  hour  at  first,  and  two 
hours  afterwards ;  and  it  was  very  well  we  did  this, 
for  they  found   the  wilderness  swarmed  with  raging 
creatures  of  all  kinds,  some  of  which  came  directly 
up    to    the   very   enclosure    of   our    tent.      But    our 
sentinels  were  ordered  not  to  alarm  us  with  firing  in 
the  night,  but  to  flash  in  the  pan  at  them,  which  they 
did,  and  found  it  effectual,  for  the  creatures  went  off 
always   as   soon   as   they  saw  it,  perhaps  with  some 


8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

noise  or  howling,  and  pursued  such  other  game  as 
they  were  upon. 

If  we  were  tired  with  the  day's  travel,  we  were  all 
as  much  tired  with  the  night's  lodging  :  but  our  black 
prince  told  us  in  the  morning  he  would  give  us  some 
counsel,  and  indeed  it  was  very  good  counsel.  He 
told  us  we  should  be  all  killed,  if  we  went  on  this 
journey,  and  through  this  desert,  without  some 
covering  for  us  at  night ;  so  he  advised  us  to  march 
back  again  to  a  little  river  side,  where  we  lay  the 
night  before,  and  stay  there  till  we  could  make  us 
houses,  as  he  called  them,  to  carry  with  us  to  lodge 
in  every  night.  As  he  began  a  little  to  understand 
our  speech,  and  we  very  well  to  understand  his  signs, 
we  easily  knew  what  he  meant,  and  that  we  should 
there  make  mats  (for  we  remembered  that  we  saw  a 
great  deal  of  matting,  or  bass  there,  that  the  natives 
made  mats  of) ;  I  say,  that  we  should  make  large  mats 
there  for  covering  our  huts  or  tents  to  lodge  in  at  night. 

We  all  approved  this  advice,  and  immediately 
resolved  to  go  back  that  one  day's  journey,  resolving, 
though  we  carried  less  provisions,  we  would  carry 
mats  with  us,  to  cover  us  in  the  night.  Some  of  the 
nimblest  of  us  got  back  to  the  river  with  more  ease 
than  we  had  travelled  it  but  the  day  before ;  but,  as 
we  were  not  in  haste,  the  rest  made  a  halt,  encamped 
another  night,  and  came  to  us  the  next  day. 

In  our  return  of  this  day's  journe)^,  our  men,  that 


Captain  Singleton  9 

made  two  days  of  it,  met  with  a  very  surprising  thing, 
that  gave  them  some  reason  to  be  careful  how  they 
parted  company  again.  The  case  was  this.  The 
second  day  in  the  morning,  before  they  had  gone  half 
a  mile,  looking  behind  them,  they  saw  a  vast  cloud  of 
sand  or  dust  rise  in  the  air,  as  we  see  sometimes 
in  the  roads  in  summer,  when  it  is  very  dusty,  and  a 
large  drove  of  cattle  are  coming,  only  very  much 
greater ;  and  they  could  easily  perceive  that  it  came 
after  them  ;  and  it  came  on  faster  than  they  went  from 
it.  The  cloud  of  sand  was  so  great  that  they  could 
not  see  what  it  was  that  raised  it ;  and  concluded  that 
it  was  some  army  of  enemies  that  pursued  them ;  but 
then  considering  that  they  came  from  the  vast  unin- 
habited wilderness,  they  knew  it  was  impossible  any 
nation  or  people  that  way  should  have  intelligence  of 
them,  or  the  way  of  their  march ;  and  therefore,  if  it 
was  an  army,  it  must  be  of  such  as  they  were  travelling 
that  way  by  accident.  On  the  other  hand,  as  they 
knew  that  there  were  no  horse  in  the  country,  and 
that  they  came  on  so  fast,  they  concluded  that  it  must 
be  some  vast  collection  of  wdld  beasts,  perhaps  making 
to  the  hill  country  for  food  or  water,  and  that  they 
should  be  all  devoured  or  trampled  under  foot  by 
their  multitude. 

Upon  this  thought  they  very  prudently  observed 
which  way  the  cloud  seemed  to  point,  and  they  turned 
a  little  out  of  the  way  to  the  north,  supposing  it  might 


lo  Defoe's  Mmor  Novels 

pass  by  them.  When  they  were  about  a  quarter  of 
a  mile,  they  halted  to  see  what  it  might  be.  One  of 
the  negroes,  a  nimbler  fellow  than  the  rest,  went  back 
a  little,  and  came  in  a  few  minutes,  running  as  fast  as 
the  heavy  sand  would  allow;  and  by  signs  gave  them 
to  know  that  it  was  a  great  herd  or  drove,  or  whatever 
it  might  be  called,  of  vast  monstrous  elephants. 

As  it  was  a  sight  our  men  had  never  seen,  they 
were  desirous  to  see  it,  and  yet  a  little  uneasy  at  the 
danger  too  :  for  though  an  elephant  is  a  heavy,  un- 
wieldy creature,  yet  in  the  deep  sand,  which  was 
nothing  at  all  to  them,  they  marched  at  a  great  rate, 
and  would  soon  have  tired  our  people,  if  they  had 
had  far  to  go,  and  had  been  pursued  by  them. 

Our  gunner  was  with  them,  and  had  a  great  mind 
to  have  gone  close  up  to  one  of  the  outermost  of  them, 
and  to  have  clapped  his  piece  to  his  ear,  and  to  have 
fired  into  him,  because  he  had  been  told  no  shot 
would  penetrate  them ;  but  they  all  dissuaded  him, 
lest,  upon  the  noise,  they  should  all  turn  upon,  and 
pursue  us  :  so  he  was  reasoned  out  of  it,  and  let  them 
pass,  which,  in  our  people's  circumstances,,  was 
certainly  the  right  way. 

They  were  between  twenty  and  thirty  in  number, 
but  prodigious  great  ones ;  and  though  they  often 
showed  our  men  that  they  saw  them,  yet  they  did  not 
turn  out  of  their  way,  or  take  any  other  notice  of  them, 
than,  as  we  may  say,  just  to  look  at  them.     We  that 


Captazji  SiJigleton  n 

were  before  saw  the  cloud  of  dust  they  raised,  but  we 
thought  it  had  been  our  own  caravan,  and  so  took  no 
notice ;  but  as  they  bent  their  course  one  point  of 
the  compass,  or  thereabouts,  to  the  southward  of  the 
east,  and  we  went  due  east,  they  passed  by  us  at  some 
little  distance ;  so  that  we  did  not  see  them,  or  know 
anything  of  them,  till  evening,  when  our  men  came  to 
us,  and  gave  us  this  account  of  them.  How^ever,  this 
w^as  a  useful  experiment  for  our  future  conduct  in 
passing  the  desert,  as  you  shall  hear  in  its  place. 

We  were  now  upon  our  work,  and  our  black  prince 
was  head  surveyor,  Jor  he  was  an  excellent  mat-maker 
himself,  and  all  his  men  understood  it ;  so  that  they 
soon  made  us  near  a  hundred  mats ;  and  as  every 
man,  I  mean  of  the  negroes,  carried  one,  it  was  no 
manner  of  load,  and  w^e  did  not  carry  an  ounce  of 
provisions  the  less.  The  greatest  burthen  was  to 
carry  six  long  poles,  besides  some  shorter  stakes ;  but 
the  negroes  made  an  advantage  of  that,  for  carrying 
them  between  two,  they  made  the  luggage  of  provisions 
which  they  had  to  carry  so  much  the  lighter,  binding 
it  upon  two  poles,  and  made  three  couple  of  them. 
As  soon  as  we  saw  this,  we  made  a  little  advantage 
of  it  too ;  for  having  three  or  four  bags,  called  bottles 
(I  mean  skins  or  bladders  to  carry  water),  more  than 
the  men  could  carry,  we  got  them  filled,  and  carried 
them  this  way,  which  w^as  a  day's  water  and  more,  for 
our  journe3\ 


12  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

Having  now  ended  our  work,  made  our  mats,  and 
fully  recruited  our  stores  of  things  necessary,  and 
having  made  us  abundance  of  small  ropes  and  matting 
for  ordinary  use,  as  we  might  have  occasion,  we  set 
forward  again,  having  interrupted  our  journey  eight 
days  in  all,  upon  this  affair.  To  our  great  comfort, 
the  night  before  we  set  out,  there  fell  a  very  violent 
shower  of  rain,  the  effects  of  which  we  found  in  the 
sand ;  though  the  one  day  dried  the  surface  as  much 
as  before,  yet  it  was  harder  at  bottom,  not  so  heavy, 
and  was  cooler  to  our  feet,  by  w^hich  means  we 
marched,  as  we  reckoned,  about  fourteen  miles  instead 
of  seven,  and  with  much  mdre  ease. 

When  we  came  to  encamp  we  had  all  things  ready, 
for  we  had  fitted  our  tent,  and  set  it  up  for  trial, 
where  we  made  it;  so  that,  in  less  than  an  hour,  we  had 
a  large  tent  raised,  with  an  inner  and  outer  apartment, 
and  two  entrances.  In  one  we  lay  ourselves,  in  the 
other  our  negroes,  having  light  pleasant  mats  over  us, 
and  others  at  the  same  time  under  us.  Also,  we  had 
a  little  place  without  all,  for  our  buffaloes,  for  they 
deserved  our  care,  being  very  useful  to  us,  besides 
carrying  forage  and  water  for  themselves.  Their 
forage  was  a  root,  which  our  black  prince  directed  us 
to  find,  not  much  unlike  a  parsnip,  very  moist  and 
nourishing,  of  which  there  was  plenty  wherever  we 
came,  this  horrid  desert  excepted. 

When  we  came  the  next  morning  to  decamp,  our 


Captain  Singleton 


I 


J 


negroes  took  down  the  tent,  and  pulled  up  the  stakes, 
and  all  was  in  motion  in  as  little  time  as  it  was 
set  up.  In  this  posture  we  marched  eight  days, 
and  yet  could  see  no  end,  no  change  of  our  pros- 
pect, but  all  looking  as  wild  and  dismal  as  at  the 
beginning.  If  there  was  any  alteration  it  was  that 
the  sand  was  nowhere  so  deep  and  heavy,  as  it 
was  the  first  three  days.  This  we  thought  might 
be,  because,  for  six  months  of  the  year,  the  winds 
blowing  west  (as  for  the  other  six,  they  blew  con- 
stantly east),  the  sand  was  driven  violently  to  the 
side  of  the  desert  where  we  set  out,  where  the 
mountains  lying  very  high,  the  easterly  monsoons, 
when  they  blew,  had  not  the  same  power  to  drive 
it  back  again ;  and  this  was  confirmed  by  our  finding 
the  Uke  depth  of  sand  on  the  farthest  extent  of  the 
desert  to  the  west. 

— -^It  was  the  ninth  day  of  our  travel  in  this  wilder- 
ness, when  we  came  to  the  view  of  a  great  lake  of 
water ;  and  you  may  be  sure  this  was  a  particular 
satisfaction  to  us,  because  we  had  not  water  left  for 
above  two  or  three  days  more,  at  our  shortest  allow- 
ance ;  I  mean,  allowing  water  for  our  return,  if  we 
had  been  put  to  the  necessity  of  it.  Our  water  had 
served  us  two  days  longer  than  expected,  our  buffaloes 
having  found,  for  two  or  three  days,  a  kind  of  herb 
like  a  broad  flat  thistle,  though  without  any  prickle, 
spreading  on  the  ground,  and  growing  in  the  sand, 


14  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

which  they  ate  freely  of,  and  which  supplied  them  for 
drink  as  well  as  forage. 

The  next  day,  which  was  the  tenth  from  our  setting 
out,  we  came  to  the  edge  of  this  lake,  and,  happily 
for  us,  we  came  to  it  at  the  south  point  of  it ;  so  w^e 
passed  by  it,  and  travelled  three  days  by  the  side  of 
it,  which  was  a  great  comfort  to  us,  because  it  lightened 
our  burthen,  there  being  no  need  to  carry  water  when 
we  had  it  in  view.  And  yet,  though  here  was  so 
much  wat6r,  we  found  but  very  little  alteration  in  the 
desert ;  no  trees,  no  grass  or  herbage,  except  that 
thistle,  as  I  called  it,  and  two  or  three  more  plants, 
which  we  did  not  understand,  of  which  the  desert 
began  to  be  pretty  full. 

But  as  we  were  refreshed  with  the  neighbourhood 
of  this  lake  of  water,  so  we  were  now  gotten  among  a 
prodigious  number  of  ravenous  inhabitants,  the  like 
whereof,  it  is  most  certain,  the  eye  of  man  never  saw  : 
for,  as  I  firmly  believe,  that  never  man,  nor  any  body 
of  men,  passed  this  desert  since  the  flood,  so  I  believe 
there  is  not  the  like  collection  of  fierce,  ravenous,  and 
devouring  creatures  in  the  world;  I  mean,  not  in  any 
particular  place. 

For  a  day's  journey  before  we  came  to  this  lake, 
and  all  the  three  days  we  were  passing  by  it,  and  for 
six  or  seven  days'  march  after  it,  the  ground  was 
scattered  with  elephants'  teeth,  in  such  a  number  as 
is  incredible ;  and,  as  some  of  them  may  have  lain 


Captain  Singleton  15 

there  for  some  hundreds  of  years,  so,  seeing  the  sub- 
stance of  them  scarce  ever  decays,  they  may  lie  there, 
for  aught  I  know,  to  the  end  of  time.  The  size  of 
some  of  them '  is,  it  seems,  to  those  to  whom  I  have 
reported  it,  as  incredible  as  the  number ;  and  I  can 
assure  you  there  were  several  so  heavy  as  the  strongest 
man  among  us  could  not  lift.  As  to  number,  I 
question  not  there  are  enough  to  load  a  thousand  sail 
of  the  biggest  ships  in  the  world,  by  which  I  may  be 
understood  to  mean,  that  the  quantity  is  not  to  be 
conceived  of;  seeing,  that  as  they  lasted  in  view  for 
above  eighty  miles  travelling,  so  they  might  continue 
as  far  to  the  right  hand,  and  to  the  left  as  far,  and 
many  times  as  far,  for  aught  we  knew ;  for  it  seems 
the  number  of  elephants  hereabouts  is  prodigiously 
great.  In  one  place  in  particular  we  saw  the  head  of 
an  elephant,  with  several  teeth  in  it,  but  one  of  the 
biggest  that  ever  I  saw  :  the  flesh  was  consumed  to 
be  sure  many  hundred  years  before,  and  all  the  other 
bones  ;  but  three  of  our  strongest  men  could  not  lift 
this  skull  and  teeth :  the  great  tooth,  I  believe, 
weighed  at  least  three  hundredweight ;  and  this  was 
particularly  remarkable  to  me,  for  I  observed  the 
whole  skull  was  as  good  ivory  as  the  teeth ;  and,  I 
believe,  altogether  weighed  at  least  six  hundredweight; 
and  though  I  do  not  know  but,  by  the  same  rule,  all 
the  bones  of  the  elephant  may  be  ivory,  yet  I  think 
there  is  a  just  objection  against  it,  from  the  example 


1 6  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

before  me,  that  then  all  the  other  bones  of  this 
elephant  would  have  been  there  as  well  as  the  head. 

I  proposed  to  our  gunner,  that,  seeing  we  had 
travelled  now  fourteen  days  without  intermission,  and 
that  we  had  water  here  for  our  refreshment,  and  no 
want  of  food  yet,  nor  any  fear  of  it,  we  should  rest 
our  people  a  little,  and  see,  at  the  same  time,  if, 
perhaps,  we  might  kill  some  creatures  that  were  proper 
for  food.  The  gunner,  who  had  more  forecast  of 
that  kind  than  I  had,  agreed  to  the  proposal,  and 
added,  why  might  we  not  try  to  catch  some  fish  out 
of  the  lake?  The  first  thing  we  had  before  us,  was 
to  try  if  we  could  make  any  hooks,  and  this  indeed 
put  our  artificer  to  his  trumps ;  however,  with  some 
labour  and  difficulty,  he  did  it,  and  we  catched  fresh 
fish  of  several  kinds.  How  they  came  there,  none 
but  He  that  made  the  lake,  and  all  the  world,  knows  ; 
for,  to  be  sure,  no  human  hands  ever  put  any  in 
there,  or  pulled  any  out  before. 

We  not  only  catched  enough  for  our  present  re- 
freshment, but  we  dried  several  large  fishes,  of  kinds 
which  I  cannot  describe,  in  the  sun,  by  which  we 
lengthened  out  our  provisions  considerably ;  for  the 
heat  of  the  sun  dried  them  so  effectually  without  salt, 
that  they  were  perfectly  cured,  dry,  and  hard,  in  one 
day's  time. 

We  rested  ourselves  here  five  days ;  during  which 
time  we  had  abundance  of  pleasant  adventures  with 


Captain  Singleton  17 

the  wild  creatures,  too  many  to  relate.  One  of  them 
was  very  particular,  which  was  a  chase  between  a  she- 
lion  or  lioness,  and  a  large  deer ;  and,  though  the 
deer  is  naturally  a  very  nimble  creature,  and  she 
flew  by  us  like  the  wind,  having,  perhaps,  about  three 
hundred  yards  the  start  of  the  lion,  yet  we  found 
the  hon,  by  her  strength,  and  the  goodness  of  her 
lungs,  got  ground  of  her.  They  passed  by  us  within 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  and  we  had  a  view  of  them 
a  great  way,  when,  having  given  them  over,  we  were 
surprised,  about  an  hour  after,  to  see  them  come 
thundering  back  again  on  the  other  side  of  us,  and 
then  the  lion  was  within  thirty  or  forty  yards  of  her ; 
and  both  straining  to  the  extremity  of  their  speed, 
when  the  deer,  coming  to  the  lake,  plunged  into  the 
water,  and  swam  for  her  life,  as  she  had  before  run 
for  it. 

The  lioness  plunged  in  after  her,  and  swam  a  little 
way,  but  came  back  again ;  and,  when  she  was  got 
upon  the  land,  she  set  up  the  most  hideous  roar  that 
ever  I  heard  in  my  life,  as  if  done  in  the  rage  of 
having  lost  her  prey. 

We  walked  out  morning  and  evening  constantly ; 
the  middle  of  the  day  we  refreshed  ourselves  under 
our  tent :  but  one  morning  early  we  saw  another 
chase,  which  more  nearly  concerned  us  than  the 
other ;  for  our  black  prince,  walking  by  the  side  of 
the  lake,  was  set  upon  by  a  vast  great  crocodile,  which 

c 


1 8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

came  out  of  the  lake  upon  him ;  and  though  he  was 
very  light  of  foot,  yet  it  was  as  much  as  he  could  do 
to  get  away  :  he  fled  amain  to  us,  and  the  truth  is 
w^e  did  not  know  w^hat  to  do,  for  we  were  told  no 
bullet  would  enter  her ;  and  we  found  it  so  at  first, 
for  though  three  of  our  men  fired  at  her,  yet  she  did 
not  mind  them ;  but  my  friend  the  gunner,  a  ventur- 
ous fellow,  of  a  bold  heart  and  great  presence  of 
mind,  went  up  so  near  as  to  thrust  the  muzzle  of  his 
piece  into  her  mouth,  and  fired,  but  let  his  piece  fall, 
and  ran  for  it  the  very  moment  he  had  fired  it :  the 
creature  raged  a  great  while,  and  spent  its  fury  upon 
the  gun,  making  marks  upon  the  very  iron  with  her 

•vteeth,  but  after  some  time  fainted  and  died. 

'^  Our  negroes  spread  the  banks  of  the  lake  all  this 
while  for  game,  and  at  length  killed  us  three  deer, 
one  of  them  very  large,  the  other  two  very  small. 
There  was  water-fowl  also  in  the  lake,  but  we  never 
came  near  enough  to  them  to  shoot  any ;  and,  as  for 
the  desert,  we  saw  no  fowls  anywhere  in  it,  but  at 
the  lake. 

We  likewise  killed  two  or  three  civet  cats  ;  but 
their  flesh  is  the  worst  of  carrion.  We  saw  abundance 
of  elephants  at  a  distance,  and  observed  they  always 
go  in  very  good  company,  that  is  to  say,  abundance 
of  them  together,  and  always  extended  in  a  fair  line 
of  battle ;  and  this,  they  say,  is  the  way  they  defend 
themselves  from  their  enemies  ;  for,  if  lions  or  tigers, 


Captain  Singleton  19 

wolves,  or  any  creatures,  attack  them,  they  being 
drawn  up  in  a  line,  sometimes  reaching  five  or  six 
miles  in  length,  whatever  comes  in  their  way  is  sure 
to  be  trod  under  foot,  or  beaten  in  pieces  with  their 
trunks,  or  lifted  up  in  the  air  with  their  trunks  :  so 
that  if  a  hundred  lions  or  tigers  w^ere  coming  along, 
if  they  meet  a  line  of  elephants,  they  will  always  fly 
back  till  they  see  room  to  pass  by  to  the  right  hand 
or  to  the  left ;  and  if  they  did  not,  it  would  be  im- 
possible for  one  of  them  to  escape  ;  for  the  elephant, 
though  a  heavy  creature,  is  yet  so  dexterous  and 
nimble  with  his  trunk  that  he  will  not  fail  to  lift  up 
the  heaviest  lion,  or  any  other  wild  creature,  and 
throw  him  up  in  the  air  quite  over  his  back,  and  then 
trample  him  to  death  with  his  feet.  We  saw  several 
lines  of  battle  thus ;  we  saw  one  so  long,  that  indeed 
there  was  no  end  of  it  to  be  seen,  and,  I  believe, 
there  might  be  two  thousand  elephants  in  a  row  or 
line.  They  are  not  beasts  of  prey,  but  live  upon  the 
herbage  of  the  field,  as  an  ox  does ;  and  it  is  said 
that  though  they  are  so  great  a  creature,  yet  that  a 
smaller  quantity  of  forage  supplies  one  of  them  than 
will  suffice  a  horse. 

The  numbers  of  this  kind  of  creature  that  are  in 
those  parts  are  inconceivable,  as  may  be  gathered 
from  the  prodigious  quantity  of  teeth,  which,  as  I 
said,  we  saw  in  this  vast  desert ;  and  indeed  we  saw 
a  hundred  of  them  to  one  of  any  other  kinds. 


20  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

One  evening  we  were  very  much  surprised ;  we 
were  most  of  us  laid  down  on  our  mats  to  sleep, 
when  our  watch  came  running  in  among  us,  being 
frightened  with  the  sudden  roaring  of  some  lions  just 
by  them,  which,  it  seems,  they  had  not  seen,  the 
night  being  dark,  till  they  were  just  upon  them.  ] 
There  was,  as  it  proved,  an  old  lion  and  his  whole 
family,  for  there  was  the  lioness  and  three  young 
lions,  besides  the  old  king,  who  was  a  monstrous 
great  one  :  one  of  the  young  ones,  who  were  good 
large  well-grown  ones  too,  leaped  up  upon  one  of  our 
negroes,  who  stood  sentinel,  before  he  saw  him,  at 
which  he  was  heartily  frightened,  cried  out,  and  ran 
into  the  tent :  our  other  man,  who  had  a  gun,  had 
not  presence  of  mind  at  first  to  shoot  him,  but  struck 
him  with  the  but-end  of  his  piece,  which  made  him 
whine  a  little,  and  then  growl  at  him  fearfully ;  but 
the  fellow  retired,  and,  we  being  all  alarmed,  three  of 
our  men  snatched  up  their  guns,  ran  to  the  tent  door, 
where  they  saw  the  great  old  lion  by  the  fire  of  his 
eyes,  and  first  fired  at  him,  but,  we  supposed,  missed 
him,  or  at  least  did  not  kill  him,  for  they  went  all 
off,  but  raised  a  most  hideous  roar,  which,  as  if  they 
had  called  for  help,  brought  down  a  prodigious 
number  of  lions,  and  other  furious  creatures,  we  know 
not  what,  about  them,  for  we  could  not  see  them ; 
but  there  was  a  noise,  and  yelling,  and  howling,  and 
all  sort  of  such  wilderness  music  on  every  side  of  us, 

mfirfyintrr"' n        ._.     n    .  i  ri»  ■ni»i  ■mi "*^' 


Captain  Singleton  21 

as  if  all  the  beasts  of  the  desert  were  assembled  to 
devour  us. 

We  asked  our  black  prince  what  we  should  do 
with  them.  '  Me  go,'  says  he,  '  and  fright  them  all' 
So  he  snatches  up  two  or  three  of  the  worst  of  our 
mats,  and,  getting  one  of  our  men  to  strike  some  fire, 
he  hangs  the  mat  up  at  the  end  of  a  pole,  and  set  it 
on  fire,  and  it  blazed  abroad  a  good  while,  at  which 
the  creatures  all  moved  off,  for  we  heard  them  roar, 
and  make  their  bellowing  noise  at  a  great  distance. 
'  Well,'  says  our  gunner,  '  if  that  will  do,  we  need  not 
burn  our  mats,  which  are  our  beds  to  lay  under  us, 
and  our  tilting  to  cover  us.  Let  me  alone,'  says  he. 
So  he  comes  back  into  our  tent,  and  falls  to  making 
some  artificial  fireworks,  and  the  like ;  and  he  gave 
our  sentinels  some  to  be  ready  at  hand  upon  occasion, 
and  particularly  he  placed  a  great  piece  of  wildfire 
upon  the  same  pole  that  the  mat  had  been  tied  to, 
and  set  it  on  fire,  and  that  burnt  there  so  long  that 
all  the  wild  creatures  left  us  for  that  time. 

However,  we  began  to  be  weary  of  such  company, 
and,  to  get  rid  of  them,  we  set  forward  again  two 
days  sooner  than  we  intended.  We  found  now  that, 
though  the  desert  did  not  end,  nor  could  we  see  any 
appearance  of  it,  yet  that  the  earth  was  pretty  full  of 
green  stuff,  of  one  sort  or  another,  so  that  our  cattle 
had  no  want ;  and,  secondly,  that  there  were  several 
little  rivers  which  ran  into  the  lake,  and,  so  long  as 


22  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

the  country  continued  low,  we  found  water  sufficient, 
which  eased  us  very  much  in  our  carriage,  and  we 
went  on  still  sixteen  days  more  Avithout  yet  coming 
to  any  appearance  of  better  soil.  After  this  we  found 
the  country  rise  a  little,  and  by  that  we  perceived 
that  the  water  would  fail  us  ;  so,  for  fear  of  the  worst, 
we  filled  our  bladder  bottles  with  water.  We  found 
the  country  rising  gradually  thus  for  three  days  con- 
tinually, when,  on  the  sudden,  we  perceived,  that 
though  we  had  mounted  up  insensibly,  yet  that  we 
were  on  the  top  of  a  very  high  ridge  of  hills,  though 
not  such  as  at  first. 

When  we  came  to  look  down  on  the  other  side  of 
the  hills,  we  saw,  to  the  great  joy  of  all  our  hearts, 
that  the  desert  was  at  an  end ;  that  the  country  was 
clothed  with  green,  abundance  of  trees,  and  a  large 
river ;  and  we  made  no  doubt  but  that  we  should  find 
people  and  cattle  also.  And  here,  by  our  gunner's 
account,  who  kept  our  computations,  we  had  marched 
about  four  hundred  miles  over  this  dismal  place  of 
horror,  having  been  four-and-thirty  days  a-doing  of  it, 
and,  consequently,  were  come  about  eleven  hundred 
miles  of  our  journey. 

We  would  willingly  have  descended  the  hills  that 
night,  but  it  was  too  late.  The  next  morning  we  saw 
everything  more  plain,  and  rested  ourselves  under  the 
shade  of  some  trees,  which  were  now  the  most  re- 
freshing   things    imaginable    to    us,    who    had    been 


Captain  Singleton  23 

scorched  above  a  month  without  a  tree  to  cover  us. 
We  found  the  country  here  very  pleasant,  especially 
considering  that  we  came  from ;  and  we  killed  some 
deer  here  also,  which  we  found  very  frequent  under 
the  cover  of  the  woods.  Also  we  killed  a  creature 
like  a  goat,  whose  flesh  was  very  good  to  eat,  but  it 
was  no  goat.  We  found  also  a  great  number  of 
fowls,  like  partridge,  but  something  smaller,  and  were 
very  tame ;  so  that  we  lived  here  very  well,  but  found 
no  people — at  least,  none  that  would  be  seen — no, 
not  for  several  days'  journey ;  and,  to  allay  our  joy, 
we  were  almost  every  night  disturbed  with  lions  and 
tigers.      Elephants  we  saw  none  here. 

In  three  days'  march  we  came  to  a  river,  which 
we  saw  from  the  hills,  and  which  we  called  the  Golden 
river ;  and  we  found  it  ran  northward,  which  was  the 
first  stream  we  had  met  with  that  did  so.  It  ran  with 
a  very  rapid  current,  and  our  gunner,  pulling  out  his 
map,  assured  me  that  this  was  either  the  river  Nile, 
or  ran  into  the  great  lake  out  of  which  the  river  Nile 
was  said  to  take  its  beginning ;  and  he  brought  out 
his  charts  and  maps,  which,  by  his  instruction,  I  be- 
gan to  understand  very  well,  and  told  me  he  would 
convince  me  of  it,  and  indeed  he  seemed  to  make  it 
so  plain  to  me  that  I  was  of  the  same  opinion. 

But  I  did  not  enter  into  the  gunner's  reason  for 
this  inquiry — not  in  the  least — till  he  went  on  with  it 
further,  and  stated  it  thus  :  If  this  is  the  river  Nile, 


24  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

why  should  we  not  build  some  more  canoes,  and  go 
down  this  stream,  rather  than  to  expose  ourselves  to  any 
more  deserts  and  scorching  sands,  in  quest  of  the  sea, 
which,  when  we  are  come  to,  we  shall  be  as  much  at 
a  loss  how  to  get  home  as  we  were  at  Madagascar. 

The  argument  was  good  had  there  been  no  objec- 
tions in  the  way,  of  a  kind  which  none  of  us  were 
capable  of  answering ;  but,  upon  the  whole,  it  was  an 
undertaking  of  such  a  nature  that  every  one  of  us 
thought  it  impracticable,  and  that  upon  several 
accounts ;  and  our  surgeon,  who  was  himself  a  good 
scholar,  and  a  man  of  reading,  though  not  acquainted 
with  the  business  of  sailing,  opposed  it,  and  some  of 
his  reasons,  I  remember,  were  such  as  these :  first, 
the  length  of  the  way,  which  both  he  and  the  gunner 
allowed,  by  the  course  of  the  water  and  turnings  of 
the  river,  would  be  at  least  four  thousand  miles ; 
secondly,  the  innumerable  crocodiles  in  the  river, 
which  we  should  never  be  able  to  escape ;  thirdly, 
the  dreadful  deserts  in  the  way ;  and,  lastly,  the 
approaching  rainy  season,  in  which  the  streams  of  the 
Nile  would  be  so  furious,  and  rise  so  high,  spreading 
far  and  wide  over  all  the  plain  country,  that  we  should 
never  be  able  to  know  when  we  were  in  the  channel 
of  the  river  and  when  not,  and  should  certainly  be 
cast  away,  overset,  or  run  aground  so  often  that  it 
would  be  impossible  to  proceed  by  a  river  so  excess- 
ively dangerous. 


Captain  Singleton 


25 


This  last  reason  he  made  so  plain  to  us  that  we 
began  to  be  sensible  of  it  ourselves ;  so  that  we 
agreed  to  lay  that  thought  aside,  and  proceed  in  our 
first  course  westw^ards  towards  the  sea  :  but,  as  if  we 
had  been  loath  to  depart,  we  continued,  by  way  of 
refreshing  ourselves,  to  loiter  two  days  upon  this 
river,  in  which  time  our  black  prince,  who  delighted 
much  in  wandering  up  and  down,  came  one  evening, 
and  brought  us  several  little  bits  of  something,  he 
knew  not  what ;  but  he  found  it  felt  heavy,  and 
looked  well,  and  showed  it  to  me,  as  what  he  thought 
was  some  rarity.  I  took  not  much  notice  of  it  to 
hmi,  but  stepping  out  and  calling  the  gunner  to  me,  I 
showed  it  to  him,  and  told  him  what  I  thought,  viz. 
that  it  was  certainly  gold  :  he  agreed  with  me  in  that, 
and  also  in  what  followed,  that  we  would  take  the 
black  prince  out  with  us  the  next  day,  and  make  him 
show  us  where  he  found  it ;  that,  if  there  was  any 
quantity  to  be  found,  we  would  tell  our  company  of 
it ;  but,  if  there  was  but  little,  we  would  keep  counsel, 
and  have  it  to  ourselves. 

But  we  forgot  to  engage  the  prince  in  the  secret, 
who  innocently  told  so  much  to  all  the  rest,  as  that 
they  guessed  what  it  was,  and  came  to  us  to  see  : 
when  we  found  it  was  public,  we  were  more  concerned 
to  prevent  their  suspecting  that  we  had  any  design  to 
conceal  it,  and  openly  telling  our  thoughts  of  it,  we 
called  our  artificer,  who  agreed  presently  that  it  was 


/f 


O  Or^    THE  "  \ 


26  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

gold ;  so  I  proposed,  that  we  should  all  go  with  the 
prince  to  the  place  where  he  found  it,  and,  if  any 
quantity  was  to  be  had,  we  would  lie  here  some  time, 
and  see  what  we  could  make  of  it. 

Accordingly,  we  went  every  man  of  us,  for  no  man 
was  willing  to  be  left  behind  in  a  discovery  of  such  a 
nature.  When  we  came  to  the  place  we  found  it 
was  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  not  in  the  main 
river,  but  in  another  small  river  or  stream  which  came 
from  the  west,  and  ran  into  the  other  at  that  place. 
We  fell  to  raking  in  the  sand,  and  washing  it  in  our 
hands,  and  we  seldom  took  up  a  handful  of  sand  but 
we  washed  some  little  round  lumps  as  big  as  a  pin's 
head,  or  sometimes  as  big  as  a  grape-stone,  into  our 
hands,  and  we  found,  in  two  or  three  hours'  time, 
that  every  one  had  got  some,  so  we  agreed  to  leave 
off,  and  go  to  dinner. 

While  we  were  eating,  it  came  into  my  thoughts, 
that  while  we  worked  at  this  rate  in  a  thing  of  such 
nicety  and  consequence,  it  was  ten  to  one  if  the  gold, 
which  was  the  makebate  of  the  world,  did  not,  first  or 
last,  set  us  together  by  the  ears,  to  break  our  good 
articles  and  our  understanding  one  among  another, 
and  perhaps  cause  us  to  part  companies,  or  worse ;  I 
therefore  told  them  that  I  was  indeed  the  youngest 
man  of  the  company,  but,  as  they  had  always  allowed 
me  to  give  my  opinion  in  things,  and  had  been  some- 
times pleased  to  follow  my  advice,  so  I  had  something 


Captain  Singleton  27 

to  propose  now  which  I  thought  would  be  for  all  our 
advantages,  and  I  believed  they  would  all  like  it  very 
well  I  told  them  we  were  in  a  country  where  we  all 
knew  there  was  a  great  deal  of  gold,  and  that  all  the 
world  sent  ships  thither  to  get  it :  that  we  did  not 
indeed  know  where  it  was,  and  so  we  might  get  a 
great  deal,  or  a  little,  we  did  not  know  whether ;  but 
I  offered  it  to  them  to  consider,  whether  it  would  not 
be  the  best  way  for  us,  and  to  preserve  the  good 
harmony  and  friendship  that  had  been  always  kept 
among  us,  and  which  was  so  absolutely  necessary  to 
our  safety,  that  what  we  found  should  be  brought 
together  to  one  common  stock,  and  be  equally 
divided  at  last,  rather  than  to  run  the  hazard  of  any 
difference  which  might  happen  among  us,  from  any 
one's  having  found  more  or  less  than  another.  I 
told  them  that,  if  we  were  all  upon  one  bottom,  we 
should  all  apply  ourselves  heartily  to  the  work ;  and, 
besides  that,  we  might  then  set  our  negroes  all  to 
work  for  us,  and  receive  equally  the  fruit  of  their 
labour,  and  of  our  own,  and  being  all  exactly  alike 
sharers,  there  could  be  no  just  cause  of  quarrel  or 
disgust  among  us. 

They  all  approved  the  proposal,  and  every  one 
jointly  swore,  and  gave  their  hands  to  one  another, 
that  they  would  not  conceal  the  least  grain  of  gold 
from  the  rest ',  and  consented  that,  if  any  one  or 
more  should  be  found  to  conceal  any,  all  that  he  had 


28  Defois  Minor  Novels 

should  be  taken  from  him,  and  divided  among  the 
rest;  and  one  thing  more  was  added  to  it  by  our 
gunner,  from  considerations  equally  good  and  just, 
that,  if  any  one  of  us,  by  any  play,  bet,  game,  or 
wager,  won  any  money  or  gold,  or  the  value  of  any, 
from  another,  during  our  whole  voyage,  till  our  return 
quite  to  Portugal,  he  should  be  obliged  by  us  all  to 
restore  it  again,  on  the  penalty  of  being  disarmed,  and 
turned  out  of  the  company,  and  of  having  no  relief 
from  us  on  any  account  whatsoever.  This  was  to 
prevent  wagering  and  playing  for  money,  which  our 
men  were  apt  to  do  by  several  games,  though  they 
had  neither  cards  nor  dice. 

Having  made  this  wholesome  agreement,  we  went 
cheerfully  to  work,  and  showed  our  negroes  how  to- 
work  for  us  ;  and,  working  up  the  stream  on  both 
sides,  and  in  the  bottom  of  the  river,  we  spent  about 
three  weeks'  time  dabbling  in  the  water;  by  which 
time,  as  it  lay  all  in  our  way,  we  had  been  gone  about 
six  miles,  and  not  more  ;  and  still  the  higher  we  went, 
the  more  gold  we  found ;  till  at  last,  having  passed 
by  the  side  of  a  hill,  we  perceived  on  a  sudden  that 
the  gold  stopped,  and  that  there  was  not  a  bit  taken 
up  beyond  that  place  :  it  presently  occurred  to  my 
mind,  that  it  must  then  be  from  the  side  of  that  little 
hill  that  all  the  gold  we  found  was  worked  down. 

Upon  this  we  went  back  to  the  hill,  and  fell  to 
work  with  that.     We  found  the  earth  loose,  and  of  a 


Captain  Singleton  29 

yellowish  loamy  colour,  and  in  some  places  a  white 
hard  kind  of  stone,  which,  in  describing  since  to  some 
of  our  artists,  they  tell  me  was  the  spar  which  is  found 
by  ore,  and  surrounds  it  in  the  mine.  However,  if  it 
had  been  all  gold,  we  had  no  instrument  to  force  it 
out ;  so  we  passed  that :  but  scratching  into  the  loose 
earth  with  our  fingers,  we  came  to  a  surprising  place, 
where  the  earth,  for  the  quantity  of  two  bushels,  I 
believe,  or  thereabouts,  crumbled  down  with  little 
more  than  touching  it,  and  apparently  showed  us  that 
there  was  a  great  deal  of  gold  in  it.  We  took  it  all 
carefully  up,  and,  washing  it  in  the  water,  the  loamy 
earth  washed  away,  and  left  the  gold  dust  free  in  our 
hands ;  and  that  which  was  more  remarkable,  was, 
that  when  this  loose  earth  was  all  taken  away,  and  we 
came  to  the  rock  or  hard  stone,  there  was  not  one 
grain  of  gold  more  to  be  found. 

At  night  we  came  all  together  to  see  what  we  had 
got ;  and  it  appeared  we  had  found,  in  that  day's 
heap  of  earth,  about  fifty  pound  weight  of  gold  dust, 
and  about  thirty-four  pound  more  in  all  the  rest  of 
our  works  in  the  river. 

It  was  a  happy  kind  of  disappointment  to  us,  that 
we  found  a  full  stop  put  to  our  work;  for,  had  the 
quantity  of  gold  been  ever  so  small,  yet,  had  any  at 
all  come,  I  do  not  know  when  we  should  have  given 
over  ;  for,  having  rummaged  this  place,  and  not  finding 
the  least  grain  of  gold  in  any  other  place,  or  in  any  of 


30  Defoe^s  Mmor  Novels 

the  earth  there,  except  in  that  loose  parcel,  we  went 
quite  back  down  the  small  river  again,  working  it 
over  and  over  again,  as  long  as  we  could  find  any- 
thing, how  small  soever ;  and  we  did  get  six  or  seven 
pound  more  the  second  time.  Then  we  went  into 
the  first  river,  and  tried  it  up  the  stream  and  down 
the  stream,  on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other.  Up 
the  stream  we  found  nothing,  no  not  a  grain ;  down 
the  stream  we  found  very  little,  not  above  the  quantity 
of  half  an  ounce  in  two  miles  working ;  so  back  we 
came  again  to  the  Golden  river,  as  we  justly  called  it, 
and  worked  it  up  the  stream  and  down  the  stream 
twice  more  apiece,  and  every  time  we  found  some 
gold,  and  perhaps  might  have  done  so  if  we  had 
stayed  there  till  this  time ;  but  the  quantity  was  at 
last  so  small,  and  the  work  so  much  the  harder,  that 
we  agreed  by  consent  to  give  it  over,  lest  we  should 
fatigue  ourselves  and  our  negroes  so  as  to  be  quite 
unfit  for  our  journey.  When  we  had  brought  all  our 
purchase  together,  w^e  had  in  the  whole  three  pound 
and  a  half  of  gold  to  a  man,  share  and  share  alike, 
according  to  such  a  w^eight  and  scale  as  our  ingenious 
cutler  made  for  us  to  weigh  it  by,  which  he  did  indeed 
by  guess,  but  which,  as  he  said,  he  was  sure  was 
rather  more  than  less,  and  so  it  proved  at  last ;  for  it 
was  near  two  ounces  more  than  weight  in  a  pound. 
Besides  this,  there  was  seven  or  eight  pounds'  weight 
left,  which  we  agreed  to  leave  in  his  hands,  to  work 


Captain  Singleton  31 

it  into  such  shapes  as  we  thought  fit,  to  give  away  to 
such  people  as  we  might  yet  meet  with,  from  whom 
we  might  have  occasion  to  buy  provisions,  or  even  to 
buy  friendship,  or  the  hke ;  and  particularly  we  gave 
a  pound  to  our  black  prince,  which  he  hammered  and 
worked  by  his  own  indefatigable  hand,  and  some  tools 
our  artificer  lent  him,  into  little  round  bits,  as  round 
almost  as  beads,  though  not  exact  in  shapS,  and,  drill- 
ing holes  through  them,  put  them  all  upAn  a  string, 
and  wore  them  about  his  black  neck,  and  they  looked 
very  well  there  I  assure  you ;  but  he  was  many 
months  a-doing  it.  And  thus  ended  our  first  golden 
adventure. 

We  now  began  to  discover  what  we  had  not 
troubled  our  heads  much  about  before ;  and  that  was, 
that  let  the  country  be  good  or  bad  that  we  were  in, 
we  could  not  travel  much  farther  for  a  considerable 
time.  We  had  been  now  five  months  and  upwards 
in  our  journey,  and  the  seasons  began  to  change ; 
and  nature  told  us,  that,  being  in  a  climate  that  had 
a  winter  as  well  as  a  summer,  though  of  a  different 
kind  from  what  our  country  produced,  we  were  to 
expect  a  wet  season,  and  such  as  we  should  not  be 
able  to  travel  in,  as  well  by  reason  of  the  rain  itself, 
as  of  the  floods  which  it  would  occasion  wherever  we 
should  come ;  and  though  we  had  been  no  strangers 
to  those  wet  seasons  in  the  island  of  Madagascar,  yet 
we  had  not  thought  much  of  them  since  we  began 


32  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

our  travels ;  for,  setting  out  when  the  sun  was  about 
the  solstice,  that  is,  when  it  was  at  the  greatest  northern 
distance  from  us,  we  had  found  the  benefit  of  it  in 
our  travels.  But  now  it  drew  near  us  apace,  and  we 
found  it  began  to  rain  ;  upon  which  we  called  another 
general  council,  in  which  we  debated  our  present 
circumstances,  and,  in  particular,  whether  we  should 
go  forward,  or  seek  for  a  proper  place  upon  the  bank 
of  our  Golden  river,  which  had  been  so  lucky  to  us, 
to  fix  our  camp  for  the  winter. 

Upon  the  whole,  it  was  resolved  to  abide  where 
we  were ;  and  it  was  not  the  least  part  of  our  happi- 
ness that  we  did  so,  as  shall  appear  in  its  place. 

Having  resolved  upon  this,  our  first  measures 
were  to  set  our  negroes  to  work,  to  make  huts  or 
houses  for  our  habitation ;  and  this  they  did  very 
dexterously,  only  that  we  changed  the  ground  where 
we  had  at  first  intended  it,  thinking,  as  indeed  it 
happened,  that  the  river  might  reach  it  upon  any 
sudden  rain.  Our  camp  was  like  a  little  town,  in 
which  our  huts  were  in  the  centre,  having  one  large 
one  in  the  centre  of  them  also,  into  which  all-  our 
particular  lodgings  opened ;  so  that  none  of  us  went 
into  our  apartments  but  through  a  public  tent,  where 
we  all  ate  and  drank  together,  and  kept  our  councils 
and  society ;  and  our  carpenters  made  us  tables, 
benches,  and  stools  in  abundance,  as  many  as  we 
could  make  use  of 


Captain  Singleton  33 

We  had  no  need  of  chimneys — it  was  hot  enough 
without  fire  ;  but  yet  we  found  ourselves  at  last  obliged 
to  keep  a  fire  every  night  upon  a  particular  occasion  ; 
for,  though  we  had  in  all  other  respects  a  very  pleasant 
and  agreeable  situation,  yet  we  were  rather  worse 
troubled  with  the  unwelcome  visits  of  wild  beasts 
here  than  in  the  wilderness  itself;  for,  as  the  deer 
and  other  gentle  creatures  came  hither  for  shelter 
and  food,  so  the  Hons,  and  tigers,  and  leopards, 
haunted  these  places  continually  for  prey. 

When  first  we  discovered  this,  we  were  so  uneasy 
at  it  that  we  thought  of  removing  our  situation ;  but, 
after  many  debates  about  it,  we  resolved  to  fortify 
ourselves  in  such  a  manner  as  not  to  be  in  any  danger 
from  it,  and  this  our  carpenters  undertook,  who  first 
palisadoed  our  camp  quite  round  with  long  stakes 
(for  we  had  wood  enough),  which  stakes  were  not 
stuck  in  one  by  another,  like  pales,  but  in  an  irregular 
manner — a  great  multitude  of  them  so  placed  that 
they  took  up  near  two  yards  in  thickness,  some  higher, 
some  lower,  all  sharpened  at  the  top,  and  about  a 
foot  asunder;  so  that,  had  any  creature  jumped  at 
them,  unless  he  had  gone  clean  over,  which  it  was 
very  hard  to  do,  he  would  be  hung  upon  twenty  or 
thirty  spikes. 

The  entrance  into  this  had  larger  stakes  than  the 
rest,  so  placed  before  one  another  as  to  make  three 
or   four  short  turnings,  which   no   four-footed  beast 

D 


34  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

bigger  than  a  dog  could  possibly  come  in  at ;  and 
that  we  might  not  be  attacked  by  any  multitude 
together,  and  consequently  be  alarmed  in  our  sleep, 
as  we  had  been,  or  be  obliged  to  waste  our  ammuni- 
tion, which  we  were  very  chary  of,  we  kept  a  great 
fire  every  night  without  the  entrance  of  our  palisado, 
having  a  hut  for  our  two  sentinels  to  stand  in  free 
from  the  rain,  just  within  the  entrance,  and  right 
against  the  fire. 

To  maintain  this  fire  we  cut  a  prodigious  deal  of 
wood,  and  piled  it  up  in  a  heap  to  dry,  and,  with  the 
green  boughs,  made  a  second  covering  over  our  huts, 
so  high  and  thick  that  it  might  cast  the  rain  off  from 
the  first,  and  keep  us  effectually  dry. 

We  had  scarce  finished  all  these  works,  but  the 
rain  came  on  so  fierce,  and  so  continued,  that  we 
had  little  time  to  stir  abroad  for  food,  except  indeed 
that  our  negroes,  who  wore  no  clothes,  seemed  to 
make  nothing  of  the  rain,  though  to  us  Europeans, 
in  those  hot  climates,  nothing  is  more  dangerous. 

We  continued  in  this  posture  for  four  months — 
that  is,  from  the  middle  of  June  to  the  middle  of 
October ;  for,  though  the  rains  went  off — at  least  the 
greatest  violence  of  them — about  the  equinox,  yet,  as 
the  sun  was  then  just  over  our  heads,  we  resolved 
to  stay  awhile  till  it  had  passed  us  a  little  to  the 
southward. 

During    our   encampment    here  we    had    several 


Captain  Singleton  35 

adventures  with  the  ravenous  creatures  of  that  country ; 
and,  had  not  our  fire  been  always  kept  burning,  I 
question  much  whether  all  our  fence,  though  v/e 
strengthened  it  afterwards  with  twelve  or  fourteen 
rows  of  stakes  or  more,  would  have  kept  us  secure. 
It  was  always  in  the  night  that  we  had  the  disturbance 
of  them,  and  sometimes  they  came  in  such  multitudes 
that  we  thought  all  the  lions  and  tigers,  and  leopards 
and  wolves  of  Africa,  were  come  together  to  attack 
us.  One  night,  being  clear  moonshine,  one  of  our 
men  being  upon  the  watch,  told  us  he  verily  believed 
he  saw  ten  thousand  wild  creatures,  of  one  sort  or 
another,  pass  by  our  little  camp ;  and  as  soon  as  ever 
they  saw  the  fire  they  sheered  off,  but  were  sure  to 
howl  or  roar,  or  whatever  it  was,  when  they  were 
past. 

The  music  of  their  voices  was  very  far  from  being 
pleasant  to  us,  and  sometimes  would  be  so  very  dis- 
turbing, that  we  could  not  sleep  for  it ;  and  often  our 
sentinels  would  call  us,  that  were  awake,  to  come  and 
look  at  them.  It  was  one  windy  tempestuous  night, 
after  a  very  rainy  day,  that  we  were  indeed  all  called 
up;  for  such  innumerable  numbers  of  devilish  creatures 
came  about  us,  that  our  watch  really  thought  they 
would  attack  us.  They  would  not  come  on  the  side 
where  the  fire  w^as ;  and  though  we  thought  ourselves 
secure  everywhere  else,  yet  we  all  got  up,  and  took  to 
our  arms.     The  moon  was  near  the  full,  but  the  air 


36  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

full  of  flying  clouds,  and  a  strange  hurricane  of  wind, 
to  add  to  the  terror  of  the  night ;  when,  looking  on 
the  back  part  of  our  camp,  I  thought  I  saw  a  creature 
within  our  fortification,  and  so  indeed  he  was,  except 
his  haunches ;  for  he  had  taken  a  running  leap,  I 
suppose,  and  with  all  his  might  had  thrown  himself 
clear  over  our  palisadoes,  except  one  strong  pile, 
which  stood  higher  than  the  rest,  and  which  had 
caught  hold  of  him,  and  by  his  weight  he  had  hanged 
himself  upon  it,  the  spike  of  the  pile  running  into  his 
hinder-haunch  or  thigh,  on  the  inside,  and  by  that  he 
hung  growling  and  biting  the  wood  for  rage.  I 
snatched  up  a  lance  from  one  of  the  negroes  that 
stood  just  by  me,  and,  running  to  him,  struck  it  three 
or  four  times  into  him,  and  despatched  him  ;  being 
unwilling  to  shoot,  because  I  had  a  mind  to  have  a 
volley  fired  among  the  rest,  which  I  could  see  stand- 
ing without,  as  thick  as  a  drove  of  bullocks  going  to 
a  fair.  I  immediately  called  our  people  out,  and 
showed  them  the  object  of  terror  which  I  had  seen, 
and,  without  any  further  consultation,  fired  a  full 
volley  among  them,  most  of  our  pieces  being  loaded 
with  three  slugs  or  bullets  apiece.  It  made  a  horrible 
clatter  among  them,  and  in  general  they  all  took  to 
their  heels,  only  that  we  could  observe  that  some 
walked  off  with  more  gravity  and  majesty  than 
others,  being  not  so  much  frightened  at  the  noise 
and  fire ;  and  we  could  perceive  that  some  were  left 


Captain  Singleton  37 

upon  the  ground  struggling  as  for  life,  but  we  durst 
not  stir  out  to  see  what  they  were. 

Indeed  they  stood  so  thick,  and  were  so  near  us, 
that  we  could  not  well  miss  killing  or  w^ounding  some 
of  them,  and  we  believed  they  had  certainly  the  smell 
of  us,  and  our  victuals  we  had  been  killing ;  for  we 
had  killed  a  deer,  and  three  or  four  of  those  creatures 
like  goats,  the  day  before ;  and  some  of  the  offal  had 
been  thrown  out  behind  our  camp ;  and  this,  we 
suppose,  drew  them  so  much  about  us ;  but  we 
avoided  it  for  the  future. 

Though  the  creatures  fled,  yet  we  heard  a  fright- 
ful roaring  all  night  at  the  place  where'  they  stood, 
which  we  supposed  was  from  some  that  were  wounded ; 
and,  as  soon  as  day  came,  we  went  out  to  see  what 
execution  we  had  done,  and,  indeed,  it  was  a  strange 
sight ;  there  were  three  tigers  and  two  wolves  quite 
killed,  besides  the  creature  I  had  killed  within  our 
palisado,  which  seemed  to  be  of  an  ill -gendered 
kind,  between  a  tiger  and  a  leopard.  Besides  this, 
there  was  a  noble  old  lion  alive,  but  with  both  his 
fore-legs  broken,  so  that  he  could  not  stir  away,  and 
he  had  almost  beat  himself  to  death  with  struggling 
all  night ;  and  we  found  that  this  w^as  the  wounded 
soldier  that  had  roared  so  loud,  and  given  us 
so  much  disturbance.  Our  surgeon,  looking  at  him, 
smiled  :  '  Now,'  says  he,  '  if  I  could  be  sure  this  lion 
would  be  as  grateful  to  me  as  one  of  his  majesty's 


^S  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

ancestors  was  to  Androcles,  the  Roman  slave,  I  would 
certainly  set  both  his  legs  again,  and  cure  him."  I 
had  not  heard  the  story  of  Androcles,  so  he  told  it  me 
at  large ;  but,  as  to  the  surgeon,  we  told  him  he  had 
no  way  to  know  whether  the  lion  would  be  so  or  not, 
but  to  cure  him  first,  and  trust  to  his  honour ;  but  he 
had  no  faith ;  so,  to  despatch  him,  and  put  him  out 
of  his  torment,  he  shot  him  into  the  head,  and  killed 
him,  for  which  we  called  him  the  king-killer  ever 
after. 

Our  negroes  found  no  less  than  five  of  these  raven- 
ous creatures  wounded  and  dropt  at  a  distance  from 
our  quarters ;  whereof,  one  was  a  wolf,  one  a  fine 
spotted  young  leopard,  and  the  other  were  creatures 
that  we  knew  not  what  to  call  them. 

We  had  several  more  of  these  sjentlefolks  about 
after  that,  but  no  such  general  rendezvous  of  them  as 
that  was  any  more;  but  this  ill  effect  it  had  to  us, 
that  it  frightened  the  deer  and  other  creatures  from 
our  neighbourhood,  of  whose  company  we  were  much 
more  desirous,  and  which  were  necessary  for  our 
subsistence :  however,  our  negroes  went  out  every 
day  a-hunting,  as  they  called  it,  with  bow  and  arrow, 
and  they  scarce  ever  failed  of  bringing  us  home  some- 
thing or  other ;  and  particularly  we  found  in  this  part 
of  the  country,  after  the  rains  had  fallen  some  time, 
abundance  of  wildfowl,  such  as  we  have  in  England  ; 
duck,  teal,  widgeon,  etc.,  some  geese,  and  some  kinds 


Captain  Singleton  39 

that  we  had  never  seen  before,  and  we  frequently 
killed  them.  Also  we  caught  a  great  deal  of  fresh 
fish  out  of  the  river,  so  that  we  wanted  no  provision  ; 
if  we  wanted  anything,  it  was  salt  to  eat  with  our 
fresh  meat,  but  we  had  a  little  left,  and  we  used  it 
sparingly  ;  for  as  to  our  negroes  they  could  not  taste 
it,  nor  did  they  care  to  eat  any  meat  that  was  seasoned 
with  it. 

The  weather  began  now  to  clear  up,  the  rains 
were  down,  and  the  floods  abated,  and  the  sun,  which 
had  passed  our  zenith,  was  gone  to  the  south^yard  a 
good  way,  so  we  proceeded  on  our  way. 

It  was  the  12th  of  October,  or  thereabouts,  that 
we  began  to  set  forward  ;  and,  having  an  easy  country 
to  travel  in,  as  well  as  to  supply  us  with  provisions, 
though  still  without  inhabitants,  we  made  more  de- 
spatch, travelling  sometimes,  as  we  calculated  it,  twenty 
or  twenty-five  miles  a  day ;  nor  did  we  halt  anywhere 
in  eleven  days'  march,  one  day  excepted,  which  was 
to  make  a  raft  to  carry  us  over  a  small  river,  which, 
having  been  swelled  with  the  rains,  was  not  yet  quite 
down. 

When  we  were  past  this  river,  which  by  the  way 
ran  to  the  northward  too,  we  found  a  great  row  of 
hills  in  our  way  :  we  saw  indeed  the  country  open  to 
the  right  at  a  great  distance ;  but,  as  we  kept  true  to 
our  course  due  west,  we  were  not  willing  to  go  a  great 
way  out  of  our  way  only  to  shun  a  few  hills ;  so  we 


40  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

advanced ;  but  we  were  surprised,  when,  being  not 
quite  come  to  the  top,  one  of  our  company,  who, 
with  two  negroes,  was  got  up  before  us,  cried  out, 
'  The  Sea  !  the  Sea  !'  and  fell  a  dancing  and  jumping, 
as  signs  of  joy. 

The  gunner  and  I  were  most  surprised  at  it,  be- 
cause we  had  but  that  morning  been  calculating 
that  we  were  then  above  a  thousand  miles  from  the 
sea-side,  and  that  we  could  not  expect  to  reach  it  till 
another  rainy  season  would  be  upon  us,  so  that,  when 
our  man  cried  out,  'The  Sea,'  the  gunner  was  angry, 
and  said  he  was  mad. 

But  we  were  both  in  the  greatest  surprise  imagin- 
able, when,  coming  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  and,  though 
it  was  very  high,  we  saw  nothing  but  water,  either 
before  us,  or  to  the  right  hand  or  the  left,  being  a 
vast  sea,  without  any  bound  but  the  horizon. 

He  went  down  the  hill  full  of  confusion  of  thought, 
not  being  able  to  conceive  whereabouts  we  were,  or 
what  it  must  be,  seeing  by  all  our  charts  the  sea  was 
yet  a  vast  way  off. 

It  was  not  above  three  miles  from  the  hill  before 
we  came  to  the  shore,  or  water-edge  of  this  sea,  and 
there,  to  our  further  surprise,  we  found  the  water 
fresh  and  pleasant  to  drink ;  so  that,  in  short,  we 
knew  not  what  course  to  take  :  the  sea,  as  we  thought 
it  to  be,  put  a  full  stop  to  our  journey  (I  mean  west- 
ward), for  it  lay  just  in  the  way.      Our  next  question 


Captain  Singleton  41 

was,  which  hand  to  turn  to,  to  the  right  or  the 
left  ?  but  this  was  soon  resolved ;  for,  as  we  knew 
not  the  extent  of  it,  we  considered  that  our  way,  if  it 
had  been  the  sea  really,  must  be  to  the  north ;  and, 
therefore,  if  we  went  to  the  south  now,  it  must  be 
just  so  much  out  of  our  way  at  last.  So,  having 
spent  a  good  part  of  the  day  in  our  surprise  at  the 
thing,  and  consulting  what  to  do,  we  set  forward  to 
the  north. 

We  travelled  upon  the  shore  of  this  sea  full 
twenty-three  days  before  we  could  come  to  any  reso- 
lution about  what  it  was  :  at  the  end  of  which,  early 
one  morning,  one  of  our  seamen  cried  out,  'Land!' 
and  it  was  no  false  alarm,  for  we  saw  plainly  the  tops 
of  some  hills  at  a  very  great  distance,  on  the  further 
side  of  the  water,  due  west ;  but  though  this  satisfied 
us  that  it  was  not  the  ocean,  but  an  inland  sea  or  lake, 
yet  we  saw  no  land  to  the  northward,  that  is  to  say, 
no  end  of  it ;  but  were  obliged  to  travel  eight 
days  more,  and  near  a  hundred  miles  farther,  before 
we  came  to  the  end  of  it,  and  then  we  found  this 
lake  or  sea  ended  in  a  very  great  river,  which  ran  N. 
or  N.  by  E.,  as  the  other  river  had  done,  which  I 
mentioned  before. 

My  friend  the  gunner,  upon  examining,  said,  that 
he  believed  that  he  was  mistaken  before,  and  that 
this  was  the  river  Nile,  but  was  still  of  the  mind  that 
we  were  of  before,  that  we  should   not  think  of  a 


42  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

voyage  into  Egypt  that  way;  so  we  resolved  upon 
crossing  this  river,  which,  however,  was  not  so  easy  as 
before,  the  river  being  very  rapid,  and  the  channel 
very  broad. 

It  cost  us,  therefore,  a  week  here  to  get  materials 
to  waft  ourselves  and  cattle  over  this  river ;  for 
though  here  were  store  of  trees,  yet  there  was  none  of 
any  considerable  growth,  sufficient  to  make  a  canoe. 

During  our  march  on  the  edge  of  this  bank  we 
met  with  great  fatigue,  and  therefore  travelled  fewer  j 
miles  in  a  day  than  before,  there  being  such  a  pro- 
digious number  of  little  rivers  that  came  down  from  \ 
the  hills  on  the  east  side,  emptying  themselves  into 
this  gulf,  all  vv'hich  waters  were  pretty  high,  the  rains 
having  been  but  newly  over. 

In  the  last  three  days  of  our  travel  we  met  with 
some  inhabitants,  but  we  found  they  lived  upon  the 
little  hills,  and  not  by  the  water-side ;  nor  were  we  a 
little  put  to  it  for  food  in  this  march,  having  killed 
nothing  for  four  or  five  days,  but  some  fish  w^e  caught 
out  of  the  lake,  and  that  not  in  such  plenty  as  we 
found  before. 

But,  to  make  us  some  amends,  we  had  no  disturb- 
ance upon  all  the  shore  of  this  lake  from  any  wild 
beasts ;  the  only  inconveniency  of  that  kind  was,  that 
we  met  an  ugly,  venomous,  deformed  kind  of  a  snake 
or  serpent  in  the  wet  grounds  near  the  lake,  that 
several  times  pursued  us,  as  if  it  would  attack  us; 


Captain  Singleton  43 

and,  if  we  struck,  or  threw  anything  at  it,  it  would 
raise  itself  up,  and  hiss  so  loud  that  it  might  be  heard 
a  great  way  off;  it  had  a  hellish  ugly  deformed  look 
and  voice,  and  our  men  would  not  be  persuaded  but 
it  was  the  devil,  only  that  we  did  not  know  what 
business  Satan  could  have  there,  where  there  were  no 
people. 

It  was  very  remarkable  that  we  had  now  travelled 
a  thousand  miles  without  meeting  with  any  people,  in 
the  heart  of  the  whole  continent  of  Africa,  where,  to 
be  sure,  never  man  set  his  foot  since  the  sons  of 
Noah  spread  themselves  over  the  face  of  the  whole 
earth.  Here  also  our  gunner  took  an  observation 
with  his  forestaff,  to  determine  our  latitude,  and  he 
found  now,  that,  having  marched  about  thirty-three 
days  northward,  we  were  in  6  degrees  22  minutes 
south  latitude. 

After  having,  with  great  difficulty,  got  over  this 
river,  we  came  into  a  strange  wild  country,  that  began 
a  little  to  affright  us ;  for  though  the  country  was  not 
a  desert  of  dry  scalding  sand,  as  that  was  we  had 
passed  before,  yet  it  was  mountainous,  barren,  and 
infinitely  full  of  most  furious  wild  beasts,  more  than 
any  place  we  had  past  yet.  There  was  indeed  a  kind 
of  coarse  herbage  on  the  surface,  and  now  and  then 
a  few  trees  or  rather  shrubs ;  but  people  we  could  see 
none,  and  we  began  to  be  in  great  suspense  about 
victuals ;  for  we  had  not  killed  a  deer  a  great  while. 


44  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

but  had  lived  chiefly  upon  fish  and  fowl,  always  by 
the  water-side,  both  which  seemed  to  fail  us  now ; 
and  we  were  in  the  more  consternation,  because  we 
could  not  lay  in  a  stock  here  to  proceed  upon,  as  we 
did  before,  but  were  obliged  to  set  out  with  scarcity, 
and  without  any  certainty  of  a  supply. 

We  had,  however,  no  remedy  but  patience ;  and, 
having  killed  some  fowls,  and  dried  some  fish,  as 
much  as,  with  short  allowance,  we  reckoned  would 
last  us  five  days,  we  resolved  to  venture,  and  venture 
we  did ;  nor  was  it  without  cause  that  we  were  appre- 
hensive of  the  danger,  for  we  travelled  the  five  days 
and  met  with  neither  fish,  nor  fowl,  nor  four-footed 
beast  whose  flesh  was  fit  to  eat ;  and  we  were  in  a 
most  dreadful  apprehension  of  being  famished  to 
death ;  on  the  sixth  day  we  almost  fasted,  or,  as  we 
may  say,  we  ate  up  all  the  scraps  of  what  we  had  left, 
and  at  night  lay  down  supperless  upon  our  mats  with 
heavy  hearts,  being  obliged,  the  eighth  day,  to  kill  one 
of  our  poor  faithful  servants,  the  buffaloes,  that  carried 
our  baggage  ;  the  flesh  of  this  creature  was  very  good, 
and  so  sparingly  did  we  eat  of  it  that  it  lasted  us  all 
three  days  and  a  half,  and  was  just  spent,  and  we 
were  upon  the  point  of  killing  another,  when  we  saw 
before  us  a  country  that  promised  better,  having  high 
trees  and  a  large  river  in  the  middle  of  it. 

This  encouraged  us,  and  we  quickened  our  march 
for  the  river  side,  though  with  empty  stomachs,  and 


Captain  Singleton  45 

very  faint  and  weak ;  but,  before  we  came  to  this 
river,  we  had  the  good  hap  to  meet  with  some  young 
deer,  a  thing  we  had  long  wished  for.  In  a  word, 
having  shot  three  of  them,  we  came  to  a  full  stop  to 
fill  our  bellies,  and  never  gave  the  flesh  time  to  cool 
before  we  ate  it ;  nay,  it  was  much  we  could  stay  to 
kill  it,  and  had  not  eaten  it  alive,  for  we  were,  in 
short,  almost  famished. 

Through  all  that  inhospitable  country  we  saw  con- 
tinually lions,  tigers,  leopards,  civet  cats,  and  abun- 
dance of  kinds  of  creatures  that  we  did  not  understand; 
we  saw  no  elephants,  but  every  now  and  then  we  met 
with  an  elephant's  tooth  lying  on  the  ground,  and 
some  of  them  lying,  as  it  were  half  buried,  by  the 
length  of  time  that  they  had  lain  there. 

When  we  came  to  the  shore  of  this  river  we  found 
it  ran  northerly  still,  as  all  the  rest  had  done,  but  with 
this  difference,  that,  as  the  course  of  the  other  rivers 
were  N.  by  E.  or  N.N.E.,  the  course  of  this  lay 
N.N.W. 

On  the  farther  bank  of  this  river  we  saw  some  sign 
of  inhabitants,  but  met  with  none  for  the  first  day ; 
but  the  next  day  we  came  into  an  inhabited  country, 
the  people  all  negroes,  and  stark  naked,  without 
shame,  both  men  and  women. 

We  made  signs  of  friendship  to  them,  and  found 
them  a  very  frank,  civil,  and  friendly  sort  of  people. 
They  came  to  our  negroes  without  any  suspicion,  nor 


46  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

did  they  give  us  any  reason  to  suspect  them  of  any 
villainy,  as  the  others  had  done ;  we  made  signs  to 
them  that  we  were  hungry,  and  immediately  some 
naked  women  ran  and  fetched  us  great  quantities  of 
roots,  and  of  things  like  pumpkins,  which  we  made 
no  scruple  to  eat ;  and  our  artificer  showed  them 
some  of  his  trinkets  that  he  had  made,  some  of  iron, 
some  of  silver,  but  none  of  gold  :  they  had  so  much 
judgment  as  to  choose  those  of  silver  before  the  iron ; 
but  when  we  showed  them  some  gold  we  found  they 
did  not  value  it  so  much  as  either  of  the  other. 

For  some  of  these  things  they  brought  us  more 
provisions,  and  three  living  creatures  as  big  as  calves, 
but  not  of  that  kind ;  neither  did  we  ever  see  any  of 
them  before ;  their  flesh  was  very  good ;  and  after 
that  they  brought  us  twelve  more,  and  some  smaller 
creatures,  like  hares ;  all  which  were  very  welcome 
to  us,  who  were  indeed  at  a  very  great  loss  for 
provisions. 

We  grew  very  intimate  with  these  people,  and 
indeed  they  were  the  civillest  and  most  friendly  people 
that  we  met  with  at  all,  and  mightily  pleased  with  us ; 
and,  which  was  very  particular,  they  were  much  easier 
to  be  made  to  understand  our  meaning  than  any  we 
had  met  with  before. 

At  last  we  began  to  inquire  our  way,  pointing  to 
the  west :  they  made  us  understand  easily  that  we 
could  not  go  that  way,  but  they  pointed  to  us  that 


Captain  Singleton  47 

we  might  go  north-west,  so  that  we  presently  under- 
stood that  there  was  another  lake  in  our  way,  which 
proved  to  be  true ;  for  in  two  days  more  we  saw  it 
plain,  and  it  held  us  till  we  passed  the  equinoctial 
line,  lying  all  the  way  on  our  left  hand,  though  at  a 
great  distance. 

Travelling  thus  northward,  our  gunner  seemed  very 
anxious  about  our  proceedings ;  for  he  assured  us, 
and  made  me  sensible  of  it  by  the  maps  which  he 
had  been  teaching  me  out  of,  that  when  we  came  into 
the  latitude  of  six  degrees,  or  thereabouts,  north  of 
the  line,  the  land  trenched  away  to  the  west,  to  such 
a  length,  that  we  should  not  come  at  the  sea  under  a 
march  of  above  fifteen  hundred  miles  farther  west- 
ward than  the  country  we  desired  to  go  to.  I  asked 
i  him  if  there  were  no  navigable  rivers  that  we  might 
I  meet  with,  which,  running  into  the  west  ocean,  might 
perhaps  carry  us  down  their  stream,  and  then,  if  it 
w^ere  fifteen  hundred  miles,  or  twice  fifteen  hundred 
miles,  we  might  do  well  enough,  if  we  could  but  get 
provisions. 

Here  he  showed  me  the  maps  again,  and  that 
there  appeared  no  river  whose  stream  was  of  such  a 
length  as  to  do  any  kindness,  till  we  came  perhaps 
within  two  or  three  hundred  miles  of  the  shore,  except 
the  Rio  Grand,  as  they  call  it,  which  lay  farther 
northward  from  us,  at  least  seven  hundred  miles ; 
and  that  then  he  knew  not  what  kind  of  country  it 


48  Defoe's  Minoi'  Novels 

might  carry  us  through;  for  he  said  it  was  his  opinion 
that  the  heats  on  the  north  of  the  Hne,  even  in  the 
same  latitude,  were  violent,  and  the  country  more 
desolate,  barren,  and  barbarous  than  those  of  the 
south ;  and  that,  when  we  came  among  the  negroes 
in  the  north  part  of  Africa,  next  the  sea,  especially  ; 
those  who  had  seen  and  trafficked  with  the  Europeans, 
such  as  Dutch,  English,  Portuguese,  Spaniards,  etc., 
they  had  most  of  them  been  so  ill-used  at  some  time 
or  other  that  they  would  certainly  put  all  the  spite 
they  could  upon  us  in  mere  revenge. 

Upon  these  considerations,  he  advised  us  that,  as 
soon  as  we  had  passed  this  lake,  we  should  proceed 
W.S.W.,  that  is  to  say  a  little  incUning  to  the  south, 
and  that  in  time  we  should  meet  with  the  great  river 
Congo,  from  whence  the  coast  is  called  Congo,  being 
a  little  north  of  Angola,  where  we  intended  at  first 
to  go. 

I  asked  him  if  ever  he  had  been  on  the  coast  of 
Congo  ?  He  said,  Yes,  he  had,  but  was  never  on 
shore  there.  Then  I  asked  him  how  we  should  get 
from  thence  to  the  coast  where  the  European  ships 
came,  seeing,  if  the  land  trenched  away  west  for  fifteen 
hundred  miles,  we  must  have  all  that  shore  to  traverse 
before  we  could  double  the  west  point  of  it  ? 

He  told  me  it  was  ten  to  one  but  we  should  hear 
of  some  European  ships  to  take  us  in,  for  that  they 
often  visited  the  coast  of  Congo  and  Angola,  in  trade 


Captain  Singleton  49 

with  the  negroes ;  and  that  if  we  could  not,  yet,  if  we 
could  but  find  provisions,  we  should  make  our  way  as 
well  along  the  seashore  as  along  the  river,  till  we 
came  to  the  gold  coast,  which,  he  said,  was  not  above 
four  or  five  hundred  miles  north  of  Congo,  besides 
the  turning  of  the  coast  west  about  three  hundred 
more,  that  shore  being  in  the  latitude  of  6  or  7 
degrees ;  and  that  there  the  English,  or  Dutch,  or 
French,  had  settlements  or  factories,  perhaps  all  of 
them. 

I  confess  I  had  more  mind,  all  the  while  he 
argued,  to  have  gone  northward,  and  shipped  our- 
selves in  the  Rio  Grand,  or,  as  the  traders  call  it,  the 
river  Negro,  or  Niger,  for  I  knew  that  at  last  it  would 
bring  us  down  to  the  Cape  de  Verd,  w^here  we  were 
'sure  of  relief;  vdiereas  at  the  coast  we  were  going  to 
now  we  had  a  prodigious  way  still  to  go,  either  by  sea 
or  land,  and  no  certainty  w^hich  way  to  get  provisions 
but  by  force ;  but  for  the  present  I  held  my  tongue, 
because  it  was  my  tutor's  opinion. 

But  when,  according  to  his  desire,  we  came  to  turn 
southward,  having  passed  beyond  the  second  great 
ake,  our  men  began  all  to  be  uneasy,  and  said  we 
wTre  now  out  of  our  way  for  certain,  for  that  we  were 
going  farther  from  home,  and  that  we  were  indeed  far 
jenough  off  already. 

But  w^e  had  not  marched  above  twelve  days  more, 
eight  whereof  was  taken  up  in  rounding  the  lake,  and 

E 

I 


50  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

four  more  south-west,  in  order  to  make  for  the  river 
Congo,  but  we  were  put  to  another  full  stop  by  enter- 
ing a  country  so  desolate,  so  frightful,  and  so  wild, 
that  we  knew  not  what  to  think  or  do ;  for,  besides 
that  it  appeared  as  a  terrible  and  boundless  desert, 
having  neither  woods,  trees,  rivers,  nor  inhabitants, 
so  even  the  place  where  we  were  was  desolate  of 
inhabitants,  nor  had  we  any  way  to  gather  in  a  stock 
of  provisions  for  the  passing  of  this  desert,  as  we  did 
before  at  our  entering  the  first,  unless  we  had  marched 
back  four  days  to  the  place  where  we  turned  the  head 
of  the  lake. 

Well,  notwithstanding  this,  we  ventured ;  for,  to 
men  that  had  passed  such  wild  places  as  we  had 
done,  nothing  could  seem  too  desperate  to  under- 
take :  we  ventured,  I  say,  and  the  rather  because  we 
saw  very  high  mountains  in  our  way  at  a  great  dis- 
tance, and  we  imagined  wherever  there  were  mountains 
there  would  be  springs  and  rivers ;  where  rivers  there 
would  be  trees  and  grass;  where  trees  and  grass  there 
would  be  cattle ;  and  where  cattle  some  kind  of 
inhabitants. 

At  last,  in  consequence  of  this  speculative  philo- 
sophy, we  entered  this  waste,  having  a  great  heap  of 
roots  and  plants  for  our  bread,  such  as  the  Indians 
gave  us,  a  very  little  flesh,  or  salt,  and  but  a  little 
water. 

We  travelled  two  days  towards  those  hills,  and  still 


Captain  Singleton  51 

they  seemed  as  far  off  as  they  did  at  first,  and  it 
was  the  fifth  day  before  we  got  to  them ;  indeed, 
we  travelled  softly,  for  it  was  excessively  hot,  and 
we  were  much  about  the  very  equinoctial  line — 
(we  hardly  knew  whether  to  the  south  or  the  north 
of  it. 

As  we  had  concluded,  that  where  there  were  hills 
there  would  be  springs,  so  it  happened ;  but  we  were 
not  only  surprised,  but  really  frightened,  to  find  the 
first  spring  we  came  to,  and  which  looked  admirably 
clear  and  beautiful,  to  be  salt  as  brine.  It  was  a 
terrible  disappointment  to  us,  and  put  us  under 
melancholy  apprehensions  at  first ;  but  the  gunner, 
who  was  of  a  spirit  never  discouraged,  told  us  we 
should  not  be  disturbed  at  that,  but  be  very  thankful, 
for  salt  was  a  bait  we  stood  in  as  much  need  of  as 
anything,  and  there  was  no  question  but  we  should 
find  fresh  water  as  well  as  salt ;  and  here  our  surgeon 
stept  in  to  encourage  us,  and  told  us  that,  if  we  did 
not  know,  he  would  show  us  a  way  how  to  make  that 
salt  water  fresh,  which  indeed  made  us  all  more 
cheerful,  though  we  wondered  what  he  meant. 

Meantime   our   men,  without   bidding,   had   been 

; seeking  about  for  other  springs,  and  found  several ; 

[but  still  they  were  all  salt;  from  whence  we  concluded 

[that  there  was  a  salt  rock  or  mineral  stone  in  those 

mountains,  and  perhaps  they  might  be  all  of  such  a 

substance ;  but  still  I  wondered  by  what  witchcraft  it 


52  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

was  that  our  artist,  the  surgeon,  would  make  this  salt 
water  turn  fresh ;  and  I  longed  to  see  the  experiment, 
which  was  indeed  a  very  odd  one ;  but  he  went  to 
work  with  as  much  assurance  as  if  he  had  tried  it  on 
the  very  spot  before. 

He  took  two  of  our  large  mats,  and  sewed  them 
together ;  and  they  made  a  kind  of  a  bag  four  feet 
broad,  three  feet  and  a  half  high,  and  about  a  foot 
and  a  half  thick  when  it  was  full. 

He  caused  us  to  fill  this  bag  with  dry  sand,  and 
tread  it  down  as  close  as  we  could,  not  to  burst  the 
mats.  When  thus  the  bag  was  full  within  a  foot,  he 
sought  some  other  earth,  and  filled  up  the  rest  with 
it,  and  still  trod  all  in  as  hard  as  he  could.  When 
he  had  done,  he  made  a  hole  in  the  upper  earth, 
about  as  broad  as  the  crown  of  a  large  hat,  or  some- 
thing bigger,  but  not  so  deep,  and  bade  a  negro  fill  it 
with  water,  and  still,  as  it  shrunk  away,  to  fill  it  again, 
and  keep  it  full.  The  bag  he  had  placed  at  first 
across  two  pieces  of  wood,  about  a  foot  from  the 
ground;  and  under  it  he  ordered  some  of  our  skins 
to  be  spread,  that  would  hold  water.  In  about  an 
hour,  and  not  sooner,  the  water  began  to  come  drop- 
ping through  the  bottom  of  the  bag,  and,  to  our  great 
surprise,  was  perfectly  fresh  and  sweet ;  and  this  con- 
tinued for  several  hours  :  but  in  the  end  the  water 
began  to  be  a  little  brackish.  When  we  told  him 
that,  '  Well  then,'  said  he,  '  turn  the  sand  out  and  fill 


Captain  Singleton  53 

it  again.'  Whether  he  did  this  by  way  of  experiment 
from  his  own  fancy,  or  whether  he  had  seen  it  done 
before,  I  do  not  remember. 

The  next  day  we  mounted  the  tops  of  the  hills, 
where  the  prospect  was  indeed  astonishing ;  for,  as 
far  as  the  eye  could  look,  south,  or  west,  or  north- 
west, there  was  nothing  to  be  seen  but  a  vast  howling 
wilderness,  with  neither  tree  nor  river,  nor  any  green 
thing.  The  surface  we  found,  as  the  part  we  passed 
I  the  day  before,  had  a  kind  of  thick  moss  upon  it,  of 
a  blackish  dead  colour,  but  nothing  in  it  that  looked 
like  food,  either  for  man  or  beast. 

Had  we  been  stored  with  provisions  to  have 
entered  for  ten  or  twenty  days  upon  this  wilderness, 
as  we  were  formerly,  and  with  fresh  water,  we  had 
hearts  good  enough  to  have  ventured,  though  we  had 
been  obliged  to  come  back  again ;  for,  if  we  went 
north,  we  did  not  know  but  we  might  meet  with  the 
same  ;  but  we  neither  had  provisions,  neither  were  we 
in  any  place  where  it  was  possible  to  get  them.  We 
killed  some  wild  ferine  creatures  at  the  foot  of  these 
hills  :  but,  except  two  things,  like  to  nothing  that  we 
ever  saw  before,  we  met  with  nothing  that  was  fit  to 
eat.  These  were  creatures  that  seemed  to  be  between 
a  kind  of  buffalo  and  a  deer,  but  indeed  resembled 
neither ;  for  they  had  no  horns,  and  had  great  legs 
like  a  cow,  with  a  fine  head,  and  the  neck  like  a  deer. 
We  killed  also,  at  several  times,  a  tiger,  two  young 


54  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

lions,  and  a  wolf:  but  God  be  thanked,  we  were  not 
so  reduced  as  to  eat  carrion. 

Upon  this  terrible  prospect  I  renewed  my  motion 
of  turning  northward,  and,  making  towards  the  river  \ 
Niger  or  Rio  Grand,  then  to  turn  west  towards  the 
English  settlements  on  the  gold  coast,  to  which  every  ( 
one  most   readily  consented,   only  our   gunner,  who 
was  indeed  our  best  guide,  though  he  happened  to  be 
mistaken  at  this  time.      He  moved  that,  as  our  coast  | 
was  now  northward,  so  we  might  slant  away  north- 
west, that  so,  by  crossing  the  country,  we  might  per- 
haps meet  with  some  other  river  that  ran  into  the 
Rio   Grand   northward,   or  down   to   the   gold   coast 
southward,  and  so  both  direct  our  way  and  shorten 
the  labour ;  as  also,  because,  if  any  of  the  country  was 
inhabited   and   fruitful,   we   should   probably  find    it   j 
upon  the  shore  of  the  rivers,  where  alone  we  could 
be  furnished  with  provisions. 

This  was  good  advice,  and  too  rational  not  to  be 
taken ;  but  our  present  business  was  what  to  do  to 
get  out  of  this  dreadful  place  we  were  in.  Behind  us 
was  a  waste,  which  had  already  cost  us  five  days' 
march,  and  we  had  not  provisions  for  five  days  left 
to  go  back  again  the  same  way.  Before  us  was 
nothing  but  horror,  as  above  :  so  we  resolved,  seeing 
the  ridge  of  the  hills  we  were  upon  had  some  appear- 
ance of  fruitfulness,  and  that  they  seemed  to  lead 
away  to  the  northward  a  great  way,  to  keep  under  the 


Captain  Singleton  55 

foot  of  them  on  the  east  side,  to  go  on  as  far  as  we 
could,  and  in  the  meantime  to  look  diligently  out  for 
food. 

Accordingly,  we  moved  on  the  next  morning,  for 
we  had  no  time  to  lose ;  and  to  our  great  comfort  we 
came,  in  our  first  morning's  march,  to  very  good 
springs  of  fresh  water;  and,  lest  we  should  have  a 
scarcity  again,  we  filled  all  our  bladder-bottles,  and 
carried  it  with  us.  I  should  also  have  observed  that 
our  surgeon,  who  made  the  salt  water  fresh,  took  the 
opportunity  of  those  salt  springs,  and  made  us  the 
quantity  of  three  or  four  pecks  of  very  good  salt. 

In  our  third  march  we  found  an  unexpected  supply 
of  food,  the  hills  being  full  of  hares ;  they  were  of  a 
kind  something  different  from  ours  in  England,  larger, 
and  not  so  swift  of  foot,  but  very  good  meat.  We 
shot  several  of  them,  and  the  little  tame  leopard, 
which  I  told  you  we  took  at  the  negro  town  that  we 
plundered,  hunted  them  like  a  dog,  and  killed  us 
several  every  day;  but  she  would  eat  nothing  of  them 
unless  we  gave  it  her,  which  indeed  in  our  own 
circumstances  was  very  obliging.  We  salted  them  a 
little,  and  dried  them  in  the  sun  whole,  and  carried  a 
strange  parcel  along  with  us.  I  think  it  was  almost 
three  hundred ;  for  we  did  not  know  when  we  might 
find  any  more,  either  of  these,  or  any  other  food. 
We  continued  our  course  under  these  hills  very 
comfortably  eight  or  nine  days,  when  we  found,  to 


56  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

our  great  satisfaction,  the  country  beyond  us  began 
to  look  with  something  of  a  better  countenance.  As 
for  the  west  side  of  the  hills,  we  never  examined  it 
till  this  day,  when  three  of  our  company,  the  rest 
halting  for  refreshment,  mounted  the  hills  again  to 
satisfy  their  curiosity,  but  found  it  all  the  same ;  nor 
could  they  see  any  end  of  it,  not  even  to  the  north, 
the  way  we  w^ere  going ;  so  the  tenth  day,  finding  the 
hills  made  a  turn,  and  led,  as  it  were,  into  the  vast 
desert,  w^e  left  them,  and  continued  our  course  north, 
the  country  being  very  tolerably  full  of  woods,  some 
waste,  but  not  tediously  long,  till  we  came,  by  our 
gunner's  observation,  into  the  latitude  of  8  degrees 
5  minutes,  which  we  were  nineteen  days  in  per- 
forming. 

All  this  way  we  found  no  inhabitants,  but  abun- 
dance of  wild  ravenous  creatures,  with  which  we 
became  so  well  acquainted  now,  that  really  we  did 
not  much  mind  them.  We  saw  lions,  and  tigers,  and 
leopards,  every  night  and  morning  in  abundance  ;  but, 
as  they  seldom  came  near  us,  we  let  them  go  about 
their  business  ;  if  they  offered  to  come  near  us  we 
made  false  fire  with  any  gun  that  was  uncharged,  and 
they  would  walk  off  as  soon  as  they  saw  the  flash. 

We  made  pretty  good  shift  for  food  all  this  way ; 
for  sometimes  w^e  killed  hares,  sometimes  some  fowls, 
but  for  my  life  I  cannot  give  names  to  any  of  them, 
except  a  kind  of  partridge,  and  another  that  was  like 


Captain  Singleton  57 

our  turtle.  Now  and  then  we  began  to  meet  with 
elephants  again  in  great  numbers ;  those  creatures 
delighted  chiefly  in  the  woody  part  of  the  country. 

This  long-continued  march  fatigued  us  very  much, 
and  two  of  our  men  fell  sick,  indeed  so  very  sick  that 
we  thought  they  would  have  died ;  and  one  of  our 
negroes  died  suddenly.  Our  surgeon  said  it  was  an 
apoplexy,  but  he  wondered  at  it,  he  said,  for  he  could 
never  complain  of  his  high  feeding.  Another  of  them 
was  very  ill,  but  our  surgeon  with  much  ado  persuad- 
ing him,  indeed  it  was  almost  forcing  him,  to  be  bled, 
he  recovered. 

We  halted  here  twelve  days  for  the  sake  of  our 
sick  men,  and  our  surgeon  persuaded  me,  and  three 
or  four  more  of  us,  to  be  bled  during  the  time  of  rest, 
which,  with  other  things  he  gave  us,  contributed  very 
much  to  our  continued  health,  in  so  tedious  a  march 
and  in  so  hot  a  climate. 

In  this  march  we  pitched  our  matted  tents  every 
night,  and  they  were  very  comfortable  to  us,  though 
we  had  trees  and  woods  to  shelter  us  also  in  most 
places.  We  thought  it  very  strange  that  in  all  this 
part  of  the  country  we  yet  met  with  no  inhabitants ; 
but  the  principal  reason,  as  we  found  afterwards,  was, 
that  we,  having  kept  a  western  course  first,  and  then 
a  northern  course,  were  gotten  too  much  into  the 
middle  of  the  country,  and  among  the  deserts : 
whereas  the  inhabitants  are  principally  found  among 


58  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

the  rivers,  lakes,  and  lowlands,  as  well  to  the  south- 
west as  to  the  north. 

What  little  rivulets  we  found  here  were  so  empty 
of  water,  that,  except  some  pits,  and  little  more  than 
ordinary  pools,  there  was  scarce  any  water  to  be  seen 
in  them  ;  and  they  rather  showed  that,  during  the 
rainy  months,  they  had  a  channel,  than  that  they  had 
really  any  running  water  in  them  at  that  time  :  by 
which  it  was  easy  for  us  to  judge  that  we  had  a  great 
way  to  go ;  but  this  was  no  discouragement  so  long 
as  we  had  but  provisions,  and  some  reasonable  shelter 
from  the  violent  heat,  which  indeed  I  thought  was 
greater  now  than  when  the  sun  w^as  just  over  our 
heads. 

Our  men  being  recovered,  we  set  forward  again, 
very  well  stored  with  provisions,  and  water  sufficient, 
and,  bending  our  course  a  little  to  the  westward  of 
the  north,  travelled  in  hopes  of  some  favourable 
stream  which  might  bear  a  canoe ;  but  we  found 
none  till  after  twenty  days'  travel,  including  eight 
days'  rest ;  for  our  men  being  weak,  we  rested  very 
often,  especially  when  we  came  to  places  which  were 
proper  for  our  purposes,  where  we  found  cattle,  fowl, 
or  anything  to  kill  for  food.  In  those  twenty  days' 
march  we  advanced  four  degrees  to  the  northw^ard, 
besides  some  meridian  distance  westward,  and  we 
met  with  abundance  of  elephants'  teeth  scattered  up 
and   down,  here  and   there,  in   the   woody  grounds 


Captain  Singleton  59 

especially,  some  of  which  were  very  large.  But  they 
were  no  booty  to  us ;  our  business  was  provisions, 
and  a  good  passage  out  of  the  country ;  and  it  had 
been  much  more  to  our  purpose  to  have  found  a 
good  fat  deer,  and  to  have  killed  it  for  our  food,  than 
a  hundred  ton  of  elephants'  teeth ;  and  yet,  as  you 
shall  presently  hear,  when  we  came  to  begin  our  pas- 
sage by  water,  we  once  thought  to  have  built  a  large 
canoe,  on  purpose  to  have  loaded  it  with  ivory ;  but 
this  was  when  we  knew  nothing  of  the  rivers,  nor 
knew  anything  how  dangerous  and  how  difficult  a 
passage  it  was  that  we  were  likely  to  have  in  them, 
nor  had  considered  the  weight  of  carriage  to  lug  them 
to  the  rivers  where  we  might  embark. 

At  the  end  of  twenty  days'  travels,  as  above,  in 
the  latitude  of  3  degrees  16  minutes,  we  discovered 
in  a  valley,  at  some  distance  from  us,  a  pretty  toler- 
able stream,  which  we  thought  deserved  the  name  of 
a  river,  and  which  ran  its  course  N.N.W.,  which  was 
just  what  we  wanted.  As  we  had  fixed  our  thoughts 
upon  our  passage  by  water,  we  took  this  for  the  place 
to  make  our  experiment,  and  bent  our  march  directly 
to  the  valley. 

There  was  a  small  thicket  of  trees  just  in  our  way, 
which  we  went  by,  thinking  no  harm,  when  on  a 
sudden  one  of  our  negroes  was  very  dangerously 
wounded  with  an  arrow,  shot  into  his  back,  slanting 
between  his  shoulders.     This  put  us  to  a  full  stop ; 


6o  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  three  of  our  men,  with  two  negroes,  spreading 
the  wood,  for  it  was  but  a  small  one,  found  a  negro 
with  a  bow,  but  no  arrow,  who  would  have  escaped, 
but  our  men  that  discovered  him  shot  him  in  revenge 
of  the  mischief  he  had  done ;  so  we  lost  the  oppor- 
tunity of  taking  him  prisoner,  which,  if  we  had  done, 
and  sent  him  home  with  good  usage,  it  might  have 
brought  others  to  us  in  a  friendly  manner. 

Going  a  little  farther,  we  came  to  five  negro  huts 
or  houses,  built  after  a  different  manner  from  any  we 
had  seen  yet ;  and  at  the  door  of  one  of  them  lay 
seven  elephants'  teeth,  piled  up  against  the  wall  or 
side  of  the  hut,  as  if  they  had  been  provided  against 
a  market :  here  were  no  men,  but  seven  or  eight 
women,  and  near  twenty  children  :  we  offered  them 
no  uncivility  of  any  kind,  but  gave  them  every  one  a 
bit  of  silver  beaten  out  thin,  as  I  observed  before, 
and  cut  diamond-fashion,  or  in  the  shape  of  a  bird ; 
at  which  the  women  were  overjoyed,  and  brought  out 
to  us  several  sorts  of  food,  which  we  did  not  under- 
stand, being  cakes  of  a  meal  made  of  roots,  which 
they  bake  in  the  sun,  and  which  eat  very  well.  We 
went  a  little  way  farther,  and  pitched  our  camp  for 
that  night,  not  doubting  but  our  civility  to  the  women 
would  produce  some  good  effect  when  their  husbands 
might  come  home. 

Accordingly,  the  next  morning,  the  women,  with 
eleven  men,  five  young  boys  and  two  good  big  girls, 


Captain  Singleton  6i 

came  to  our  camp  ;  before  they  came  quite  to  us  the 
v/omen  called  aloud,  and  made  an  odd  screaming 
noise,  to  bring  us  out;  and,  accordingly,  we  came  out ; 
when  two  of  the  women,  showing  us  what  we  had 
given  them,  and  pointing  to  the  company  behind, 
made  such  signs  as  we  could  easily  understand  signi- 
fied friendship.  When  the  men  advanced,  having 
bows  and  arrows,  they  laid  them  down  on  the  ground, 
scraped,  and  threw  sand  over  their  heads,  and  turned 
round  three  times,  with  their  hands  laid  up  upon  the 
tops  of  their  heads.  This,  it  seems,  was  a  solemn 
vow  of  friendship.  Upon  this  we  beckoned  them 
with  our  hands  to  come  nearer ;  then  they  sent  the 
boys  and  girls  to  us  first,  which,  it  seems,  was  to 
j  bring  us  more  cakes  of  bread,  and  some  green  herbs, 
to  eat,  which  we  received,  and  took  the  boys  up  and 
kissed  them,  and  the  Httle  girls  too;  then  the  men 
came  up  close  to  us,  and  sat  them  down  on  the 
ground,  making  signs  that  we  should  sit  down  by 
them,  which  we  did.  They  said  much  to  one  another, 
but  we  could  not  understand  them,  nor  could  we  find 
any  way  to  make  them  understand  us ;  much  less 
whither  we  were  going,  or  what  we  wanted,  only  that 
we  easily  made  them  understand  we  wanted  victuals  : 
whereupon  one  of  the  men  casting  his  eyes  about 
him  towards  a  rising  ground  that  was  about  half  a 
mile  off,  started  up  as  if  he  was  frightened,  flew  to 
the  place  where  they  had  laid  down  their  bows  and 


62  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

arrows,  snatched  up  a  bow  and  two  arrows,  and  ran 
like  a  racehorse  to  the  place  :  when  he  came  there, 
he  let  fly  both  his  arrows,  and  came  back  again  to  us 
with  the  same  speed ;  we  seeing  he  came  with  the 
bow,  but  without  the  arrows,  were  the  more  inquisitive, 
but  the  fellow  saying  nothing  to  us,  beckons  to  one 
of  our  negroes  to  come  to  him,  and  we  bid  him  go ; 
so  he  led  him  back  to  the  place,  where  lay  a  kind  of 
a  deer,  shot  with  two  arrows,  but  not  quite  dead ; 
and  between  them  they  brought  it  down  to  us.  This 
was  for  a  gift  to  us,  and  was  very  welcome,  I  assure 
you,  for  our  stock  was  low.  These  people  were  all 
stark  naked. 

The  next  day  there  came  about  a  hundred  men 
and  women  to  us,  making  the  same  awkward  signals 
of  friendship,  and  dancing,  and  showing  themselves 
very  well  pleased,  and  anything  they  had  they  gave 
us.  How  the  man  in  the  wood  came  to  be  so 
butcherly  and  rude  as  to  shoot  at  our  men,  without 
making  any  breach  first,  we  could  not  imagine ;  for 
the  people  were  simple,  plain,  and  inoffensive  in  all 
our  other  conversation  with  them. 

From  hence  we  went  down  the  bank  of  the  little 
river  I  mentioned,  and  where  I  found  we  should  see 
whole  nations  of  negroes  ;  but  whether  friendly  to 
us  or  not,  that  we  could  make  no  judgment  of  yet. 

The  river  was  of  no  use  to  us,  as  to  the  design  of 
making  canoes,  a  great  while ;  and  we  traversed  the 


Captain  Singleton  63 

country  on  the  edge  of  it  about  five  days  more,  when 
our  carpenters,  finding  the  stream  increase,  proposed 
to  pitch  our  tents  and  fall  to  work  to  make  canoes  ; 
but  after  we  had  begun  the  work,  and  cut  down  two 
or  three  trees,  and  spent  five  days  in  the  labour, 
some  of  our  men,  wandering  farther  down  the  river, 
brought  us  word  that  the  stream  rather  decreased 
than  increased,  sinking  away  into  the  sands,  or  drying 
up  by  the  heat  of  the  sun ;  so  that  the  river  appeared 
not  able  to  carry  the  least  canoe  that  could  be  any 
way  useful  to  us :  so  w^e  were  obliged  to  give  over 
our  enterprise  and  move  on. 

In  our  farther  prospect  this  way  we  marched 
three  days  full  west,  the  country  on  the  north  side 
being  extraordinary  mountainous,  and  more  parched 
and  dry  than  any  we  had  seen  yet ;  whereas,  in  the 
part  which  looks  due  west,  we  found  a  pleasant 
valley,  running  a  great  way  between  two  great  ridges 
of  mountains.  The  hills  looked  frightful,  being 
entirely  bare  of  trees  or  grass,  and  even  white  with 
the  dryness  of  the  sand ;  but  in  the  valley  we  had 
trees,  grass,  and  some  creatures  that  were  fit  for  food, 
and  some  inhabitants. 

We  passed  by  some  of  their  huts  or  houses,  and 
saw  people  about  them  ;  but  they  ran  up  into  the 
hills  as  soon  as  they  saw  us.  At  the  end  of  this 
valley  we  met  with  a  peopled  country,  and  at  first 
it    put    us    to   some    doubt   whether  we    should    go 


64  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

among  them  or  keep  up  towards  the  hills  northerly ; 
and  as  our  aim  was  principally,  as  before,  to  make 
our  way  to  the  river  Niger,  we  inclined  to  the  latter, 
pursuing  our  course  by  the  compass  to  the  N.W. 
We  marched  thus  without  interruption  seven  days 
more,  when  we  met  with  a  surprising  circumstance, 
much  more  desolate  and  disconsolate  than  our  own, 
and  which,  in  time  to  come,  will  scarce  seem  credible. 

We  did  not  much  seek  the  conversing,  or  acquaint- 
ing ourselves  with  the  natives  of  the  country,  except 
where  we  found  the  want  of  them  for  our  provision, 
or  their  direction  for  our  way ;  so  that,  whereas  we 
found  the  country  here  begin  to  be  very  populous, 
especially  towards  our  left  hand — that  is,  to  the 
south — we  kept  at  the  more  distance  northerly,  still 
stretching  towards  the  west. 

In  this  tract  we  found  something  or  other  to  kill 
and  eat,  which  always  supplied  our  necessity,  though 
not  so  well  as  we  were  provided  in  our  first  setting 
out.  Being  thus,  as  it  were,  pushing  to  avoid  the 
peopled  country,  we  at  last  came  to  a  very  pleasant, 
agreeable  stream  of  water,  not  big  enough  to  be 
called  a  river,  but  running  to  the  N.N.W.,  which 
was  the  very  course  we  desired  to  go. 

On  the  farthest  bank  of  this  brook  we  perceived 
some  huts  of  negroes,  not  many,  and  in  a  little  low 
spot  of  ground,  some  maize,  or  Indian  corn,  growing, 
which  intimated  presently  to  us,  that  there  were  some 


Captain  Singleton  65 

inhabitants  on  that  side,   less  barbarous   than  those 
we  had  met  with  in  other  places  where  we  had  been. 

As  we  went  forward,  our  whole  caravan  being  in 
a  body,  our  negroes,  who  were  in  the  front,  cried  out 
that  they  saw  a  white  man  !  We  were  not  much 
surprised  at  first,  it  being,  as  we  thought,  a  mistake 
of  the  fellows,  and  asked  them  what  they  meant, 
when  one  of  them  stept  up  to  me,  and,  pointing  to 
a  hut  on  the  other  side  of  the  hill,  I  was  astonished 
to  see  a  white  man  indeed,  but  stark  naked,  very 
busy  near  the  door  of  his  hut,  and  stooping  down 
to  the  ground  with  something  in  his  hand,  as  if  he 
had  been  at  some  work,  and,  his  back  being  towards 
us,  he  did  not  see  us. 

I  gave  notice  to  our  negroes  to  make  no  noise, 
and  waited  till  some  more  of  our  men  were  come  up, 
to  show  the  sight  to  them,  that  they  might  be  sure 
I  was  not  mistaken,  and  we  were  soon  satisfied  of 
the  truth  ;  for  the  man,  having  heard  some  noise, 
started  up,  and  looked  full  at  us,  as  much  surprised, 
o  be  sure,  as  we  were,  but  whether  with  fear  or  hope 
sve  then  knew  not. 

As  he  discovered  us,  so  did  the  rest  of  the  inhabi- 
pnts  belonging  to  the  huts  about  him,  and  all 
prowded  together,  looking  at  us  at  a  distance  :  a 
ittle  bottom,  in  which  the  brook  ran,  lying  between 
IS,  the  white  man,  and  all  the  rest,  as  he  told  us 
ifterwards,   not  knowing  well   whether   they  should 

F 


65  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

stay  or  run  away.  However,  it  presently  came  into 
my  thoughts  that,  if  there  were  white  men  among 
them,  it  would  be  much  easier  for  us  to  make  them 
understand  what  we  meant,  as  to  peace  or  war,  than 
we  found  it  with  others ;  so,  tying  a  piece  of  white 
rag  to  the  end  of  a  stick,  we  sent  two  negroes  with  it 
to  the  bank  of  the  water,  carrying  the  pole  up  as  high 
as  they  could.  It  was  presently  understood,  and  two 
of  their  men  and  the  white  man  came  to  the  shore 
on  the  other  side. 

However,  as  the  white  man  spoke  no  Portuguese, 
they  could  understand  nothing  of  one  another  but 
by  signs  ;  but  our  men  made  the  white  man  under- 
stand that  they  had  white  men  with  them  too,  at 
which  they  said  the  white  man  laughed.  However, 
to  be  short,  our  men  came  back,  and  told  us  they 
were  all  good  friends,  and  in  about  an  hour  four  of 
our  men,  two  negroes,  and  the  black  prince  went  to 
the  river  side,  where  the  w^hite  man  came  to  them. 

They  had  not  been  half  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
there,  till  a  negro  came  running  to  me,  and  told  me 
the  white  man  was  Inglese,  as  he  called  him  :  upon 
which  I  ran  back,  eagerly  enough  you  may  be  sure, 
with  him,  and  found,  as  he  said,  that  he  was  an 
Englishman,  upon  which  he  embraced  me  very 
passionately,  the  tears  running  down  his  face.  The 
first  surprise  of  his  seeing  us  was  over  before  we 
came  ;  but  any  one   may  conceive   it  by  the  brief 


Captain  Singleton  67 

account  he  gave  us  afterwards  of  his  very  unhappy 
circumstance,  and  of  so  unexpected  a  deUverance, 
such  as  perhaps  never  happened  to  any  man  in  the 
jworld ;  for  it  was  a  million  to  one  odds  that  ever  he 
Icould  have  been  relieved — nothing  but  an  adventure 
that  never  was  heard  or  read  of  before  could  have 
suited  his  case,  unless  heaven,  by  some  miracle  that 
never  was  to  be  expected,  had  acted  for  him. 

He  appeared  to  be  a  gentleman,  not  an  ordinary- 
bred  fellow,  seaman,  or  labouring  man  ;  this  showed 
itself  in  his  behaviour,  in  the  first  moment  of  our 
[conversing  with  him,  and  in  spite  of  all  the  dis- 
advantages of  his  miserable  circumstances. 

He  was  a  middle-aged  man,  not  above  thirty- 
seven  or  thirty -eight,  though  his  beard  was  grown 
exceedingly  long,  and  the  hair  of  his  head  and  face 
strangely  covered  him  to  the  middle  of  his  back  and 
breast ;  he  was  white,  and  his  skin  very  fine,  though 
discoloured,  and  in  some  places  blistered,  and  covered 
with  a  brown  blackish  substance,  scurvy,  scaly,  and 
nard,  which  was  the  effect  of  the  scorching  heat  of 
;he  sun ;  he  was  stark  naked,  and  had  been  so,  as  he 
old  us,  upwards  of  two  years. 

He  was  so  exceedingly  transported  at  our  meeting 
with  him  that  he  could  scarce  enter  into  any  dis- 
:ourse  at  all  with  us  for  that  day  ;  and,  when  he 
:ould  get  away  from  us  for  a  little,  we  saw  him 
talking  alone,  and  showing  all  the  most  extravagant 


68  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

tokens  of  an  ungovernable  joy ;  and  even  afterwards 
he  was  never  without  tears  in  his  eyes  for  several 
days,  upon  the  least  word  spoken  by  us  of  his 
circumstances,  or  by  him  of  his  deliverance. 

We  found  his  behaviour  the  most  courteous  and 
endearing  I  ever  saw  in  any  man  whatever,  and  most 
evident  tokens  of  a.  mannerly  well-bred  person 
appeared  in  all  things  he  did  or  said ;  and  our 
people  were  exceedingly  taken  with  him.  He  was 
a  scholar  and  a  mathematician ;  he  could  not  speak 
Portuguese  indeed,  but  he  spoke  Latin  to  our 
surgeon,  French  to  another  of  our  men,  and  Italian 
to  a  third. 

He  had  no  leisure  in  his  thoughts  to  ask  us 
whence  we  came,  whither  we  were  going,  or  who 
we  were ;  but  would  have  it  always  as  an  answer  to 
himself,  that  to  be  sure,  wherever  we  were  a-going, 
we  came  from  heaven,  and  were  sent  on  purpose  to 
save  him  from  the  most  wretched  condition  that  ever 
man  was  reduced  to. 

Our  men  pitching  their  camp  on  the  bank  of  a 
little  river  opposite  to  him,  he  began  to  inquire 
what  store  of  provisions  we  had,  and  how  we  pro- 
posed to  be  suppUed ;  when  he  found  that  our 
store  was  but  small,  he  said  he  would  talk  with  the 
natives,  and  we  should  have  provisions  enough ;  for 
he  said  they  were  the  most  courteous,  good-natured 
part  of  the  inhabitants  in  all  that  part  of  the  country, 


Captain  Singleton  69 

as  we  might  suppose  by  his  living  so  safe  among 
them. 

The  first  things  this  gentleman  did  for  us  were 
indeed  of  the  greatest  consequence  to  us ;  for,  first, 
he  perfectly  informed  us  where  we  were,  and  which 
was  the  properest  course  for  us  to  steer  :  secondly,  he 
put  us  in  a  way  how  to  furnish  ourselves  effectually  with 
provisions ;  and,  thirdly,  he  was  our  complete  inter- 
preter and  peace -maker  with  all  the  natives,  who 
now  began  to  be  very  numerous  about  us ;  and 
who  were  a  more  fierce  and  politic  people  than 
those  we  had  met  with  before ;  not  so  easily  terrified 
with  our  arms  as  those,  and  not  so  ignorant  as  to 
give  their  provisions  and  corn  for  our  little  toys, 
such,  as  I  said  before,  our  artificer  made  ;  but,  as 
they  had  frequently  traded  and  conversed  with  the 
Europeans  on  the  coast,  or  with  other  negro  nations 
that  had  traded  and  been  concerned  with  them,  they 
were  the  less  ignorant  and  the  less  fearful,  and 
consequently  nothing  was  to  be  had  from  them  but 
by  exchange  for  such  things  as  they  liked. 

This  I  say  of  the  negro  natives,  which  we  soon 
came  among ;  but  as  to  these  poor  people  that  he 
lived  among,  they  were  not  much  acquainted  with 
things,  being  at  the  distance  of  above  three  hundred 
miles  from  the  coast,  only  that  they  found  elephants' 
teeth  upon  the  hills  to  the  north,  which  they  took 
and  carried  about  sixty  or  seventy  miles  south,  where 


70  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

other  trading  negroes  usually  met  them,  and  gave 
them  beads,  glass,  shells,  and  cowries  for  them,  such 
as  the  English  and  Dutch,  and  other  traders,  furnish 
them  with  from  Europe. 

We  now  began  to  be  more  familiar  with  our  new 
acquaintance ;  and,  first,  though  we  made  but  a 
sorry  figure  as  to  clothes  ourselves,  having  neither 
shoe,  nor  stocking,  nor  glove,  nor  hat,  among  us,  and 
but  very  few  shirts,  yet  as  well  as  we  could  we 
clothed  him  ;  and  first,  our  surgeon  having  scissors  and 
razors,  shaved  him,  and  cut  his  hair ;  a  hat,  as  I  say, 
we  had  not  in  all  our  stores,  but  he  supplied  himself 
by  making  a  cap  of  a  piece  of  a  leopard's  skin,  most 
artificially.  As  for  shoes  or  stockings,  he  had  gone  so 
long  without  them  that  he  cared  not  even  for  the  buskins  \ 
and  foot-gloves  we  wore,  which  I  described  above. 

As  he  had  been  curious  to  hear  the  whole  story 
of  our  travels,  and  was  exceedingly  delighted  with 
the  relation,  so  we  were  no  less  to  know,  and  pleased 
with,  the  account  of  his  circumstance,  and  the  history 
of  his  coming  to  that  strange  place  alone,  and  in 
that  condition,  which  we  found  him  in,  as  above. 
This  account  of  his  would  indeed  be,  in  itself,  the 
subject  of  an  agreeable  history,  and  would  be  as 
long  and  as  diverting  as  our  own,  having  in  it  many 
strange  and  extraordinary  incidents,  but  we  cannot 
have  room  here  to  launch  out  into  so  long  a  digres- 
sion :  the  sum  of  his  history  was  this. 


Captain  Singleton  71 

He  had  been  a  factor  for  the  EngHsh  Guinea 
company  at  Sierra  Leone,  or  some  other  of  their 
settlements  which  had  been  taken  by  the  French, 
where  he  had  been  plundered  of  all  his  own  effects, 
as  well  as  of  what  was  entrusted  to  him  by  the 
company.  Whether  it  was  that  the  company  did 
not  do  him  justice  in  restoring  his  circumstances,  or 
in  further  employing  him,  he  quitted  their  service,  and 
was  employed  by  those  they  called  separate  traders ; 
and  being  afterwards  out  of  employ  there  also, 
traded  on  his  own  account ;  when,  passing  unwarily 
into  one  of  the  company's  settlements,  he  was  either 
betrayed  into  the  hands  of  some  of  the  natives,  or, 
somehow  or  other,  was  surprised  by  them.  However, 
as  they  did  not  kill  him,  he  found  means  to  escape 
from  them  at  that  time,  and  fled  to  another  nation 
of  the  natives,  who,  being  enemies  to  the  other, 
entertained  him  friendly,  and  with  them  he  lived 
some  time ;  but  not  liking  his  quarters  or  his 
company  he  fled  again,  and  several  times  changed 
his  landlords ;  sometimes  was  carried  by  force, 
sometimes  hurried  by  fear,  as  circumstances  altered 
with  him  (the  variety  of  which  deserves  a  history  by 
itself),  till  at  last  he  had  wandered  beyond  all 
possibility  of  return,  and  had  taken  up  his  abode 
where  we  found  him,  where  he  was  well  received 
by  the  petty  king  of  the  tribe  he  lived  with ;  and  he, 
in  return,  instructed  him  how  to  value  the  product 


72  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

of  their  labour,  and  on  what  terms  to  trade  with 
those  negroes  who  came  up  to  them  for  teeth. 

As  he  was  naked,  and  had  no  clothes,  so  he  was 
naked  of  arms  for  his  defence,  having  neither  gun, 
sword,  staff,  nor  any  instrument  of  war  about  him,  no 
not  to  guard  himself  against  the  attacks  of  a  wild 
beast,  of  which  the  country  was  very  full.  We  asked 
him  how  he  came  to  be  so  entirely  abandoned  of  all 
concern  for  his  safety?  He  answered.  That  to  him, 
that  had  so  often  wished  for  death,  life  was  not  worth 
defending ;  and  that,  as  he  was  entirely  at  the  mercy 
of  the  negroes,  they  had  much  the  more  confidence 
in  him  seeing  he  had  no  weapons  to  hurt  them.  As 
for  wild  beasts  he  was  not  much  concerned  about 
them ;  for  he  had  scarcely  ever  gone  from  his  hut ; 
but  if  he  did,  the  negro  king  and  his  men  went  all 
armed  with  bows  and  arrows,  and  lances,  with  which 
they  would  kill  any  of  the  ravenous  creatures,  lions  as 
well  as  others ;  but  that  they  seldom  came  abroad  in 
the  day ;  and  if  the  negroes  wander  anywhere  in  the 
night  they  always  build  a  hut  for  themselves,  and 
make  a  fire  at  the  door  of  it,  which  is  guard  enough. 

We  inquired  of  him  what  we  should  next  do 
towards  getting  to  the  seaside  :  he  told  us  we  were 
about  a  hundred  and  twenty  English  leagues  from  the 
coast,  where  almost  all  the  European  settlements  and 
factories  were,  and  which  is  called  the  Gold  Coast ; 
but   that    there   were  so   many   different    nations  of 


Captain  Singleton  73 

negroes  in  the  way  that  it  was  ten  to  one  if  we  were 
not  either  fought  with  continually,  or  starved  for  want 
of  provisions  :  but  that  there  were  two  other  ways  to 
go,  which,  if  he  had  had  any  company  to  go  with 
him,  he  had  often  contrived  to  make  his  escape  by. 
The  one  was  to  travel  full  west,  which,  though  it  was 
farther  to  go,  yet  was  not  so  full  of  people ;  and  the 
people  we  should  find  would  be  so  much  the  civiller 
to  us,  or  be  so  much  the  easier  to  fight  with ;  or,  that 
the  other  way  was,  if  possible,  to  get  to  the  Rio 
Grand,  and  go  down  the  stream  in  canoes.  We  told 
him  that  was  the  way  we  had  resolved  on  before  we 
met  with  him ;  but  then  he  told  us  there  was  a  pro- 
digious desert  to  go  over,  and  as  prodigious  woods  to 
go  through,  before  we  came  to  it,  and  that  both  to- 
gether were  at  least  twenty  days'  march  for  us,  travel 
as  hard  as  we  could. 

We  asked  him  if  there  were  no  horses  in  the 
country,  or  asses,  or  even  bullocks  or  buffaloes,  to 
make  use  of  in  such  a  journey,  and  we  showed  him 
ours,  of  which  we  had  but  three  left ;  he  said  no,  all 
the  country  did  not  afford  anything  of  that  kind. 

He  told  us  that  in  this  great  wood  there  were 
immense  numbers  of  elephants;  and,  upon  the  desert, 
great  multitudes  of  lions,  lynxes,  tigers,  leopards,  etc  ; 
and  that  it  was  to  that  wood,  and  to  that  desert,  that 
the  negroes  went  to  get  elephants'  teeth,  where  they 
never  failed  to  find  a  great  number. 


Of    THE 


74  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

We  inquired  still  more,  and  particularly  the  way 
to  the  gold  coast,  and  if  there  were  no  rivers  to  ease 
us  in  our  carriage ;  and  told  him  as  to  the  negroes 
fighting  with  us,  we  were  not  much  concerned  at 
that ;  nor  were  we  afraid  of  starving,  for,  if  they  had 
any  victuals  among  them  we  would  have  our  share  of 
it ;  and,  therefore,  if  he  would  venture  to  show  us 
the  way  we  would  venture  to  go ;  and  as  for  himself, 
we  told  him  we  would  live  and  die  together,  there 
should  not  a  man  of  us  stir  from  him. 

He  told  us,  with  all  his  heart ;  if  we  resolved  it, 
and  would  venture,  we  might  be  assured  he  would 
take  his  fate  with  us,  and  he  would  endeavour  to 
guide  us  in  such  a  way  as  we  should  meet  with  some 
friendly  savages  who  would  use  us  well,  and  perhaps 
stand  by  us  against  some  others,  who  were  less  tract- 
able ;  so,  in  a  word,  we  all  resolved  to  go  full  south 
for  the  gold  coast. 

The  next  morning  he  came  to  us  again,  and  being 
all  met  in  council,  as  we  may  call  it,  he  began  to  talk 
very  seriously  with  us  ;  that,  since  we  were  now  come, 
after  a  long  journey,  to  a  view  of  the  end  of  our 
troubles,  and  had  been  so  obliging  to  him  as  to  offer 
to  carry  him  with  us,  he  had  been  all  night  revolving 
in  his  mind  what  he  and  we  all  might  do  to  make 
ourselves  some  amends  for  all  our  sorrows ;  and,  first, 
he  said,  he  was  to  let  me  know  that  we  were  just 
then  in  one  of  the  richest  parts  of  the  world,  though 


Captain  Singleton  75 

it  was  really,  otherwise,  but  a  desolate,  disconsolate 
wilderness;  'for,'  says  he,  'there  is  not  a  river  but  runs 
gold,  not  a  desert  but,  without  ploughing,  bears  a  crop 
of  ivory.  What  mines  of  gold,  what  immense  stores 
of  gold  those  mountains  may  contain,  from  whence 
these  rivers  come,  or  the  shores  which  these  waters 
run  by,  we  know  not,  but  may  imagine  that  they  must 
be  inconceivably  rich,  seeing  so  much  is  washed  down 
the  stream  by  the  water  washing  the  sides  of  the  land, 
that  the  quantity  suffices  all  the  traders  which  the 
European  world  send  thither.'  We  asked  him  how 
far  they  went  for  it,  seeing  the  ships  only  trade  upon 
the  coast.  He  told  us  that  the  negroes  on  the  coast 
search  the  rivers  up  for  the  length  of  a  hundred  and 
fifty  or  two  hundred  miles,  and  would  be  out  a  month, 
or  two  or  three  at  a  time,  and  always  came  home 
sufficiently  rewarded;  'but,'  says  he,  'they  never  come 
thus  far,  and  yet  hereabouts  is  as  much  gold  as  there.' 
Upon  this  he  told  us  that  he  believed  he  might  have 
gotten  a  hundred  pounds'  weight  of  gold  since  he 
came  hither,  if  he  had  employed  himself  to  look  and 
work  for  it,  but  as  he  knew  not  what  to  do  with  it, 
and  had  long  since  despaired  of  being  ever  delivered 
from  the  misery  he  was  in,  he  had  entirely  omitted  it. 
'  For  what  advantage  had  it  been  to  me,'  said  he,  '  or 
what  richer  had  I  been,  if  I  had  a  ton  of  gold  dust, 
and  lay  and  wallowed  in  it  ?  The  richness  of  it,'  said 
he,  'would  not   give  me  one  moment's  felicity,   nor 


76  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

relieve  me  in  the  present  exigency.  Nay,'  says  he, 
'  as  you  all  see,  it  would  not  buy  me  clothes  to  cover 
me,  or  a  drop  of  drink  to  save  me  from  perishing. 
It  is  of  no  value  here,'  says  he;  'there  are  several 
people  among  these  huts  that  would  weigh  gold 
against  a  few  glass  beads,  or  a  cockle-shell,  and 
give  you  a  handful  of  gold  dust  for  a  handful  of 
cowries.' 

N.B. — These  are  little  shells,  which  our  children 
call  blackamoors'  teeth. 

When  he  had  said  this  he  pulled  out  a  piece  of 
an  earthern  pot  baked  hard  in  the  sun  :  '  Here,'  says 
he,  'is  some  of  the  dirt  of  this  country,  and  if  I 
would,  I  could  have  got  a  great  deal  more;'  and 
showing  it  to  us,  I  believe  there  was  in  it  between 
two  and  three  pounds'  weight  of  gold  dust,  of  the 
same  kind  and  colour  with  that  we  had  gotten  already, 
as  before.  After  we  had  looked  at  it  awhile,  he  told 
us,  smiling,  we  were  his  deliverers,  and  all  he  had,  as 
well  as  his  life,  was  ours ;  and  therefore,  as  this  would 
be  of  value  to  us  when  we  came  to  our  own  country, 
so  he  desired  we  would  accept  of  it  among  us,  and 
that  this  was  the  only  time  that  he  had  repented  that 
he  had  picked  up  no  more  of  it. 

I  spoke  for  him  as  his  interpreter  to  my  comrades, 
and  in  their  names  thanked  him;  but,  speaking  to 
them  in  Portuguese,  I  desired  them  to  refer  the 
acceptance  of  his  kindness  to  the  next  morning ;  and 


Captain  Singleton  jy 

so  I  did,  telling  him  we  would  further  talk  of  this  part 
in  the  morning ;  so  we  parted  for  that  time. 

When  he  was  gone  I  found  they  were  all  won- 
derfully affected  with  his  discourse,  and  with  the 
generosity  of  his  temper,  as  well  as  the  magnificence 
of  his  present,  which  in  another  place  had  been  ex- 
traordinary. Upon  the  whole,  not  to  detain  you  with 
circumstances,  we  agreed  that,  seeing  he  was  now 
one  of  our  number,  and  that,  as  we  were  a  relief  to 
him  in  carrying  him  out  of  the  dismal  condition  he 
was  in,  so  he  was  equally  a  relief  to  us  in  being  our 
guide  through  the  rest  of  the  country,  our  interpreter 
with  the  natives,  and  our  director  how  to  manage 
with  the  savages,  and  how  to  enrich  ourselves  with 
the  wealth  of  the  country ;  that,  therefore,  we  would 
put  his  gold  among  our  common  stock,  and  every 
one  should  give  him  as  much  as  would  make  his  up 
just  as  much  as  any  single  share  of  our  own,  and  for 
the  future  we  would  take  our  lot  together,  taking  his 
solemn  engagement  to  us,  as  we  had  before  one  to 
another,  that  we  would  not  conceal  the  least  grain  of 
gold  we  found  one  from  another. 

In  the  next  conference  we  acquainted  him  with 
the  adventures  of  the  Golden  river,  and  how  we  had 
shared  what  we  got  there ;  so  that  every  man  had  a 
larger  stock  than  he  for  his  share;  that,  therefore, 
instead  of  taking  any  from  him,  we  had  resolved 
every  one  to  add  a  little  to  him.     He  appeared  very 


78  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

glad  that  we  had  met  with  such  good  success,  but 
would  not  take  a  grain  from  us,  till  at  last,  pressing 
him  very  hard,  he  told  us  that  then  he  would  take  it 
thus :  that  when  we  came  to  get  any  more  he  would 
have  so  much  out  of  the  first  as  should  make  him 
even,  and  then  we  should  go  on  as  equal  adventurers  ; 
and  thus  we  agreed. 

He  then  told  us  he  thought  it  would  not  be  an 
unprofitable  adventure,  if,  before  we  set  forward,  and 
after  we  had  got  a  stock  of  provisions,  we  should 
make  a  journey  north  to  the  edge  of  the  desert  he 
had  told  us  of,  from  whence  our  negroes  might  bring 
every  one  a  large  elephant's  tooth,  and  that  he  would 
get  some  more  to  assist ;  and  that,  after  a  certain 
length  of  carriage,  they  might  be  conveyed  by  canoes 
to  the  coast,  where  they  would  yield  a  very  great 
profit. 

I  objected  against  this,  on  account  of  our  other 
design  we  had  of  getting  gold  dust ;  and  that  our 
negroes,  who  we  knew  would  be  faithful  to  us,  would 
get  much  more  by  searching  the  rivers  for  gold  for  us, 
than  by  lugging  a  great  tooth  of  a  hundred  and  fifty 
pounds'  weight,  a  hundred  miles  or  more,  which 
would  be  an  insufferable  labour  to  them  after  so  hard 
a  journey,  and  would  certainly  kill  them. 

He  acquiesced  in  the  justice  of  this  answer,  but 
fain  would  have  had  us  gone  to  see  the  woody  part 
of  the  hill,  and  the  edge  of  the  desert,  that  we  might 


Captain  Singleton  79 

[  see  how  the  elephants'  teeth  lay  scattered  up  and 
down  there ;  but  when  we  told  him  the  story  of  what 
we  had  seen  before,  as  is  said  above,  he  said  no  more. 

We  staid  here  twelve  days,  during  which  time  the 
natives  were  very  obliging  to  us,  and  brought  us  fruits, 
pompions,  and  a  root  like  carrots,  though  of  quite 
another  taste,  but  not  unpleasant  neither,  and  some 
Guinea  fowls,  whose  names  we  did  not  know.  In 
short,  they  brought  us  plenty  of  what  they  had,  and 
we  lived  very  well,  and  we  gave  them  all  such  little 
things  as  our  cutler  had  made,  for  he  had  a  whole 
bag  full  of  them. 

On  the  thirteenth  day  we  set  forward,  taking  our 
new"  gentleman  with  us.  At  parting,  the  negro  king 
sent  two  savages  with  a  present  to  him,  of  some  dried 
flesh,  but  I  do  not  remember  what  it  was,  and  he 
gave  them  again  three  silver  birds  which  our  cutler 
helped  him  to,  which  I  assure  you  was  a  present  for 
a  king. 

We  travelled  now  south,  a  little  west,  and  here  we 
found  the  first  river  for  above  two  thousand  miles' 
march,  whose  water  ran  south,  all  the  rest  running 
north  or  west.  We  followed  this  river,  which  was  no 
bigger  than  a  good  large  brook  in  England,  till  it 
began  to  increase  its  water.  Every  now  and  then  we 
found  our  Englishman  went  down,  as  it  were  privately 
to  the  water,  which  was  to  try  the  sand.  At  length, 
after  a  day's  march  upon  this  river,  he  came  running 


8o  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

up  to  us  with  his  hands  full  of  sand,  and  saying, 
'  Look  here.'  Upon  looking,  we  found  that  a  good 
deal  of  gold  lay  spangled  among  the  sand  of  the  river. 
'  Now,'  says  he,  '  I  think  we  may  begin  to  work ; '  so 
he  divided  our  negroes  into  couples,  and  set  them  to 
work,  to  search  and  wash  the  sand  and  ooze  in  the 
bottom  of  the  water,  where  it  was  not  deep. 

In  the  first  day  and  a  quarter  our  men  altogether 
had  gathered  a  pound  and  two  ounces  of  gold,  or 
thereabouts ;  and,  as  we  found  the  quantity  increased 
the  farther  we  went,  we  followed  it  about  three  days, 
till  another  small  rivulet  joined  the  first,  and  then, 
searching  up  the  stream,  we  found  gold  there  too ;  so 
we  pitched  our  camp  in  the  angle  where  the  rivers 
joined,  and  we  diverted  ourselves,  as  I  may  call  it,  in 
washing  the  gold  out  of  the  sand  of  the  river,  and  in 
getting  provisions. 

Here  we  staid  thirteen  days  more,  in  which  time 
we  had  many  pleasant  adventures  with  the  savages, 
too  long  to  mention  here,  and  some  of  them  too 
homely  to  tell  of :  for  some  of  our  men  had  made 
something  free  with  their  women,  which,  had  not  our 
new  guide  made  peace  for  us  with  one  of  their  men, 
at  the  price  of  seven  bits  of  silver,  which  our  artificer 
had  cut  out  into  the  shapes  of  lions  and  fishes,  and 
birds,  and  had  punched  holes  to  hang  them  up  by 
(an  inestimable  treasure  !),  we  must  have  gone  to  war 
with  them  and  all  their  people. 


Captain  Singleton  8i 

All  the  while  we  were  busy  washing  gold  dust  out 
of  the  rivers,  and  our  negroes  the  like,  our  ingenious 
cutler  was  hammering  and  cutting,  and  he  was  grown 
so  dexterous  by  use,  that  he  formed  all  manner  of 
I  images.  He  cut  out  elephants,  tigers,  civet  cats, 
I  ostriches,  eagles,  cranes,  fowls,  fishes,  and  indeed 
whatever  he  pleased,  in  thin  plates  of  hammered  gold, 
for  his  silver  and  iron  were  almost  all  gone. 

At  one  of  the  towns  of  these  savage  nations  we 

were  very  friendly  received  by  their  king ;  and  as  he 

was  very  much   taken  with  our  workman's  toys,   he 

sold  him  an  elephant  cut  out  of  a  gold  plate  as  thin 

;as  a  sixpence  at   an   extravagant   rate.      He  was   so 

much  taken  with  it  that  he  would  not  be  quiet  till  he 

ihad  given  him  almost  a  handful  of  gold  dust,  as  they 

kail  it.      I  suppose  it  might  weigh  three-quarters  of  a 

i  pound ;  the  piece  of  gold  that  the  elephant  was  made 

!of  might  be  about  the  weight  of  a  pistole,  rather  less 

I  than  more.      Our  artist  was  so   honest,   though   the 

[labour  and  art  were  all  his  own,  that  he  brought  ah 

[the  gold,  and  put  it  into  our  common  stock  ;  but  we 

[had  indeed  no  manner  of  reason  in  the  least  to  be 

jcovetous,  for,  as  our  new  guide  told  us,  we  that  were 

[strong   enough   to   defend   ourselves,    and    had   time 

;enough  to  stay  (for  we  were  none  of  us  in  haste), 

might  in  time  get  together  what  quantity  of  gold  we 

pleased,  even  to  a  hundred  pounds'  weight  a  man  if 

we  thought  fit ;  and  therefore,  he  told  us,  though  he 

G 


82  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

had  as  much  reason  to  be  sick  of  the  country  as  any 
of  us,  yet,  if  we  thought  to  turn  our  march  a  Httle  to 
the  south-east,  and  pitch  upon  a  place  proper  for  our 
head-quarters,  we  might  find  provisions  plenty  enough, 
and  extend  ourselves  over  the  country  among  the 
rivers,  for  two  or  three  years,  to  the  right  and  left, 
and  we  should  soon  find  the  advantage  of  it. 

The  proposal,  however  good  as  to  the  profitable 
part  of  it,  suited  none  of  us,  for  we  were  all  more 
desirous  to  get  home  than  to  be  rich,  being  tired  of 
the  excessive  fatigue  of  above  a  year's  continual 
wandering  among  deserts  and  wild  beasts. 

However,  the  tongue  of  our  new  acquaintance  had 
a  kind  of  charm  in  it,  and  used  such  arguments,  and 
had  so  much  the  power  of  persuasion,  that  there  was 
no  resisting  him.  He  told  us  it  was  preposterous 
not  to  take  the  fruit  of  all  our  labours  now  we  were 
come  to  the  harvest ;  that  we  might  see  the  hazard 
the  Europeans  ran,  with  ships  and  men,  and  at  great 
expense,  to  fetch  a  little  gold ;  and  that  we  that  were 
in  the  centre  of  it  to  go  away  empty-handed  was  un- 
accountable ;  that  we  were  strong  enough  to  fight  our 
way  through  whole  nations,  and  might  make  our 
journey  afterward  to  what  part  of  the  coast  we  pleased  ; 
and  we  should  never  forgive  ourselves  when  we  came 
to  our  own  country  to  see  we  had  five  hundred 
pistoles  in  gold,  and  might .  as  easily  have  had  five 
thousand  or  ten  thousand,  or  what  we  pleased ;  that 


Captain  Singleton  g3 

ihe  was  no  more  covetous  than  we,  but,  seeing  it  was 
'in  all  our  powers  to  retrieve  our  misfortunes  at  once, 
land  make  ourselves  easy  for  all  our  lives,  he  could 
[not  be  faithful  to  us,  or  grateful  for  the  good  we  had 

I  done  him,  if  he  did  not  let  us  see  the  advantage 
we  had  in  our  hands ;  and  he  assured  us  he  would 
Imake  it  clear  to  our  own  understanding  that  we  might, 
I  in  two  years'  time,  by  good  management,  and  by  the 
[help  of  our  negroes,  gather  every  man  a  hundred 
pounds'  weight  of  gold,  and  get  together  perhaps  two 
hundred  tons  of  teeth ;  whereas,  if  once  we  pushed 
on  to  the  coast,  and  separated,  we  should  never  be 
able  to  see  that  place  again  with  our  eyes,  or  do  any 
more  than  sinners  did  with  heaven — wish  themselves 
there,  but  know  they  can  never  come  at  it. 

Our  surgeon  was  the  first  man  that  yielded  to  his 
reasoning,  and  after  him  the  gunner ;  and  they  two 
indeed  had  a  great  influence  over  us,  but  none  of  the 
[rest  had  any  mind  to  stay,  nor  I  either,  I  must  con- 
ess  ;  for  I  had  no  notion  of  a  great  deal  of  money, 
pr  what  to  do  with  myself,  or  what  to  do  with  it  if  I 
[lad  it.     I  thought  I  had  enough  already,  and  all  the 
Lhought  I  had  about  disposing  of  it,  if  I  came  to 
Europe,  was  only  how  to  spend  it  as  fast  as  I  could, 
|)uy  me  some  clothes,  and  go  to  sea  again,  to  be  a 
irudge  for  more. 

However,  he  prevailed  with  us  by  his  good  words, 
it  last,  to  stay  but  for  six  months  in  the  country,  and 


84  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

then,  if  we  did  resolve  to  go,  he  would  submit :  so  at 
length  we  yielded  to  that,  and  he  carried  us  about 
fifty  English  miles  south-east,  where  we  found  several 
rivulets  of  water,  which  seemed  to  come  all  from  a 
great  ridge  of  mountains  which  lay  to  the  north-east, 
and  which,  by  our  calculation,  must  be  the  beginning 
that  way  of  the  great  waste,  which  we  had  been 
forced  northward  to  avoid. 

Here  we  found  the  country  barren  enough ;  but 
yet  we  had,  by  his  directions,  plenty  of  food  ;  for 
the  savages  round  us,  upon  giving  them  some  of  our 
toys,  as  I  have  so  often  mentioned,  brought  us  in 
whatever  they  had ;  and  here  we  found  some  maize, 
or  Indian  wheat,  which  the  negro-women  planted,  as 
we  sow  seeds  in  a  garden,  and  immediately  our  new 
providitor  ordered  some  of  our  negroes  to  plant  it, 
and  it  grew  up  presently,  and,  by  watering  it  often, 
we  had  a  crop  in  less  than  three  months'  growth. 

As  soon  as  we  were  settled,  and  our  camp  fixed, 
we  fell  to  the  old  trade  of  fishing  for  gold  in  the 
rivers  mentioned  above,  and  our  English  gentleman 
so  well  knew  how  to  direct  our  search,  that  we  scarce 
ever  lost  our  labour. 

One  time,  having  set  us  to  work,  he  asked  if  we 
would  give  him  leave,  with  four  or  five  negroes,  to  go 
out  for  six  or  seven  days  to  seek  his  fortune,  and 
see  what  he  could  discover  in  the  country,  assuring 
us  whatever  he  got  should  be  for  the  public  stock. 


Captain  Singleton  85 

We  all  gave  him  our  consent,  and  lent  him  a  gun  ; 
and  two  of  our  men  desiring  to  go  with  him,  they 
took  then  six  negroes  with  them,  and  two  of  our 
buffaloes  that  came  with  us  the  whole  journey ;  they 
took  about  eight  days'  provision  of  bread  with  them, 
but  no  flesh,  except  about  as  much  dried  flesh  as 
would  serve  them  two  days. 

They  travelled  up  to  the  top  of  the  mountains  I 
i  mentioned  just  now,  where  they  saw  (as  our  men 
I  afterw^ards  vouched  it  to  be)  the  same  desert  which 
I  we  were  so  justly  terrified  at,  when  w^e  were  on  the 
[  farther  side,  and  which,  by  our  calculation,  could  not 
;  be  less  than  three  hundred  miles  broad,  and  above 
!  six  hundred  miles  in  length,  without  knowing  where 
jit  ended. 

The  journal  of  their  travels  is  too  long  to  enter 

upon    here ;    they   stayed    out    two    and    fifty   days, 

'  when  they  brought  us  seventeen  pounds,  and  some- 

t  thing   more  (for  we   had   no  exact  weight),   of  gold 

!  dust,  some  of  it  in  much  larger  pieces  than  any  we 

\  found  before  ;  besides  about  fifteen  tons  of  elephants' 

teeth,  which  he  had,  partly  by  good  usage,  and  partly 

1  by  bad,  obliged  the  savages  of  the  country  to  fetch 

and   bring   down   to   him  from   the   mountains,   and 

.which  he  made  others  bring  with  him  quite  down  to 

our  camp.     Indeed  w^e  wondered  what  was  coming 

to  us  when  we   saw  him    attended  with   above  two 

hundred  negroes ;  but  he  soon  undeceived  us,  when 


86  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

he  made  them  all  throw  down  their  burthens  on  a  \ 
heap,  at  the  entrance  of  our  camp. 

Besides  this,  they  brought  lions'  skins,  and  five 
leopards'  skins,  very  large  and  very  fine.  He  asked 
our  pardon  for  his  long  stay,  and  that  he  had  made 
no  greater  a  booty,  but  told  us,  he  had  one  excursion 
more  to  make,  which  he  hoped  should  turn  to  a 
better  account. 

So,  having  rested  himself,  and  rewarded  the 
savages  that  brought  the  teeth  for  him,  with  some 
bits  of  silver  and  iron  cut  out  diamond-fashion,  and 
with  two  shaped  like  little  dogs,  he  sent  them  away 
mightily  pleased. 

The  second  journey  he  went  some  more  of  our 
men  desired  to  go  with  him,  and  they  made  a  troop 
of  ten  white  men,  and  ten  savages,  and  the  two 
buffaloes  to  carry  their  provisions  and  ammunition. 
They  took  the  same  course,  only  not  exactly  the 
same  track,  and  they  stayed  thirty-two  days  only, 
in  which  time  they  killed  no  less  than  fifteen 
leopards,  three  lions,  and  several  other  creatures,  and 
brought  us  home  four  and  twenty  pounds  some 
ounces  of  gold  dust,  and  only  six  elephants'  teeth, 
but  they  were  very  great  ones. 

Our  friend  the  Englishman  showed  us  now  that 
our  time  was  well  bestowed ;  for  in  five  months, 
which  we  had  stayed  here,  we  had  gathered  so  much 
;rold  dustj  that,  when  we  came  to  share  it,  we  had 


Captain  Singleton  87 

five  pounds  and  a  quarter  to  a  man,  besides  what 
we  had  before,  and  besides  six  or  seven  pounds' 
weight  which  we  had  at  several  times  given  to  our 
artificer  to  make  baubles  with ;  and  now  we  talked 
of  going  forward  to  the  coast  to  put  an  end  to  our 
journey  ;  but  our  guide  laughed  at  us  then  :  '  Nay, 
you  cannot  go  now,'  says  he,  '  for  the  rainy  season 
begins  next  month,  and  there  will  be  no  stirring 
then.'  This  we  found  indeed  reasonable,  so  we 
resolved  to  furnish  ourselves  with  provisions,  that 
we  might  not  be  obliged  to  go  abroad  too  much  in 
the  rain,  and  we  spread  ourselves,  some  one  way, 
and  some  another,  as  far  as  we  cared  to  venture, 
to  get  provisions,  and  our  negroes  killed  us  some 
deer,  which  we  cured,  as  well  as  we  could,  in  the 
sun,  for  we  had  no  salt. 

By  this  time  the  rainy  months  were  set  in,  and 
we  could  scarce,  for  above  two  months,  look  out  of 
our  huts.  But  that  was  not  all,  for  the  rivers  were 
so  swelled  with  the  landfloods,  that  we  scarce  knew 
the  little  brooks  and  rivulets  from  the  great  navigable 
rivers.  This  had  been  a  very  good  opportunity  to 
have  conveyed  by  water,  upon  rafts,  our  elephants' 
teeth,  of  which  we  had  a  very  great  pile  ;  for,  as 
we  always  gave  the  savages  some  reward  for  their 
labour,  the  very  women  would  bring  us  teeth  upon 
every  opportunity,  and  sometimes  a  great  tooth 
carried    between    two  ;    so    that    our    quantity   was 


88  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

increased     to    about     two     and     twenty    tons     of 
teeth. 

As  soon  as  the  weather  proved  fair  again,  he  told 
us  he  would  not  press  us  to  any  further  stay,  since 
we  did  not  care  whether  we  got  any  more  gold  or 
not :  that  we  were  indeed  the  first  men  he  ever  met 
with  in  his  life  that  said  they  had  gold  enough,  and 
of  whom  it  might  be  truly  said  that,  when  it  lay 
under  our  feet,  we  would  not  stoop  to  take  it  up. 
But  since  he  had  made  us  a  promise,  he  would  not 
break  it,  nor  press  us  to  make  any  further  stay,  only 
he  thought  he  ought  to  tell  us,  that  now  was  the 
time,  after  the  landflood,  when  the  greatest  quantity 
of  gold  was  found  ;  and  that,  if  we  stayed  but  one 
month,  we  should  see  thousands  of  savages  spread 
themselves  over  the  whole  country  to  vrash  the  gold 
out  of  the  sand,  for  the  European  ships  which  would 
come  on  the  coast ;  that  they  do  it  then,  because  the 
rage  of  the  floods  always  works  down  a  great  deal  of 
gold  out  of  the  hills ;  and  if  we  took  the  advantage 
to  be  there  before  them,  we  did  not  know  what 
extraordinary  things  we  might  find. 

This  was  so  forcible,  and  so  well  argued,  that  it 
appeared  in  all  our  faces  we  were  prevailed  upon ; 
so  we  told  him  we  would  all  stay ;  for,  though  it  was 
true  we  were  all  eager  to  be  gone,  yet  the  evident 
prospect  of  so  much  advantage  could  not  be  well 
resisted — that    he    was   greatly    mistaken    when    he 


Captain  Singleton  89 

suggested  that  we  did  not  desire  to  increase  our 
store  of  gold,  and  in  [short]  that  we  were  resolved  to 
make  the  utmost  use  of  the  advantage  that  was  in  our 
hands,  and  would  stay  as  long  as  any  gold  was  to 
be  had,  if  it  was  another  year. 

He  could  hardly  express  the  joy  he  was  in  on 
this  occasion ;  and  the  fair  weather  coming  on,  we 
began,  just  as  he  directed,  to  search  about  the  rivers 
for  more  gold.  At  first  we  had  but  little  encourage- 
ment, and  began  to  be  doubtful ;  but  it  was  very 
plain  that  the  reason  was,  the  water  was  not  fully 
fallen,  or  the  rivers  reduced  to  their  usual  channel. 
But  in  a  few  days  we  were  fully  requited,  and  found 
much  more  gold  than  at  first,  and  in  bigger  lumps ; 
and  one  of  our  men  washed  out  of  the  sand  a  piece 
of  gold  as  big  as  a  small  nut,  which  weighed,  by  our 
estimation,  for  we  had  no  small  weights,  almost  an 
ounce  and  a  half. 

This  success  made  us  extremely  diligent,  and  in  a 
little  more  than  a  month  we  had  altogether  gotten 
near  sixty  pounds'  weight  of  gold ;  but  after  this,  as 
he  told  us,  we  found  abundance  of  the  savages,  men, 
women,  and  children,  hunting  every  river  and  brook, 
and  even  the  dry  land  of  the  hills,  for  gold,  so  that 
we  could  do  nothing  like  then,  compared  to  what  we 
had  done  before. 

But  our  artificer  found  a  v/ay  to  make  other 
people   find    us    in   gold   without    our   own    labour ; 


90  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

for,  when  these  people  began  to  appear,  he  had  a 
considerable  quantity  of  his  toys,  birds,  beasts,  etc., 
such  as  before,  ready  for  them,  and,  the  English 
gentleman  being  the  interpreter,  he  brought  the 
savages  to  admire  them  ;  so  our  cutler  had  trade 
enough,  and,  to  be  sure,  sold  his  goods  at  a 
monstrous  rate,  for  he  would  get  an  ounce  of  gold, 
sometimes  two,  for  a  bit  of  silver,  perhaps  of  the 
value  of  a  groat — nay,  if  it  were  iron — and  if  it  were 
of  gold,  they  would  not  give  the  more  for  it ;  and  it 
was  incredible  almost  to  think  what  a  quantity  of 
gold  he  got  that  way. 

In  a  word,  to  bring  this  happy  journey  to  a 
conclusion,  we  increased  our  stock  of  gold  here, 
in  three  months'  stay  more,  to  such  a  degree  that, 
bringing  it  all  to  a  common  stock,  in  order  to  share 
it,  w^e  divided  almost  four  pounds'  weight  again  to 
every  man  ;  and  then  we  set  forward  for  the  gold 
coast,  to  see  w^hat  method  we  could  find  out  for  our 
passage  into  Europe. 

There  happened  several  very  remarkable  incidents 
in  this  part  of  our  journey,  as  to  how  we  were,  or 
were  not,  received  friendly  by  the  several  nations  of 
savages  through  which  we  passed ;  how  we  delivered  1 
one  negro  king  from  captivity  w^ho  had  been  a 
benefactor  to  our  new  guide ;  and  how  our  guide, 
in  gratitude,  by  our  assistance,  restored  him  to  his 
kingdom,  which,  perhaps,  might  contain  about  three 


Captain  Singleton  91 

hundred  subjects ;  how  he  entertained  us  ;  and  how 
he  made  his  subjects  go  with  our  Enghshman,  and 
fetch  all  our  elephants'  teeth  which  we  had  been 
obliged  to  leave  behind  us,  and  to  carry  them  for 
us  to  the  river,  the  name  of  which  I  forgot,  where 
we  made  rafts,  and  in  eleven  days  more  came  down 
I  to  one  of  the  Dutch  settlements  on  the  gold  coast, 
where  we  arrived  in  perfect  health,  and  to  our  great 
satisfaction.  As  for  our  cargo  of  teeth,  we  sold  it 
to  the  Dutch  factory,  and  received  clothes  and  other 
necessaries  for  ourselves  and  such  of  our  negroes  as 
we  thought  fit  to  keep  with  us  ;  and  it  is  to  be 
observed  that  we  had  four  pounds  of  gunpowder 
j  left  when  we  ended  our  journey.  The  negro  prince 
l  we  made  perfectly  free,  clothed  him  out  of  our 
I  common  stock,  and  gave  him  a  pound  and  a  half 
of  gold  for  himself,  which  he  knew  very  well  how 
to  manage ;  and  here  we  all  parted  after  the  most 
friendly  manner  possible.  Our  Englishman  remained 
in  the  Dutch  factory  some  time,  and,  as  I  heard 
afterwards,  died  there  of  grief;  for  he  having  sent 
a  thousand  pounds  sterling  over  to  England,  by  the 
way  of  Holland,  for  his  refuge  at  his  return  to  his 
friends,  the  ship  was  taken  by  the  French,  and  the 
effects  all  lost. 

The  rest  of  my  comrades  went  away,  in  a  small 
bark,  to  the  two  Portuguese  factories,  near  Gambia, 
in    the    latitude    of    14    degrees ;    and    I,    with    two 


92  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

negroes  which  I  kept  with  me,  went  away  to  Cape 
Coast  Castle,  where  I  got  passage  for  England,  and 
arrived  there  in  September ;  and  thus  ended  my  first 
harvest  of  wild  oats ;  the  rest  were  not  sowed  to  so 
much  advantage. 

{In  his  '  second  harvest '  Singleton  falls  into  piratical 
company^  and  the  rest  of  the  book  is  occupied  with  his 
experiences  thereof.  The  chief  figure  of  this  part — a 
figure  in  which  Defoe's  skill  in  character-drawing  re- 
appears— is  a  certain  Quaker  7iamed  William  Walters^ 
whom  the  pirates  capture^  and  who  very  ingeniously, 
while  declining  actually  to  join  them,  assists  thou  in  their 
plans.  He  finally  converts  Singleton  {after  Defoe^s  very 
odd  notio?is  of  conversion^  the  pair  make  their  way  to 
England  with  their  gains,  Singleto?i  mar?'ies  William^ s 
sister,  afid  all  is  well.  But  this  is  hoiu  Williani  under- 
stood 7ieutrality. ) 

We  had  one  very  merry  fellow  here,  a  quaker, 
whose  name  was  William  Walters,  whom  we  took  out 
of  a  sloop  bound  from  Pennsylvania  to  Barbadoes. 
He  was  a  surgeon,  and  they  called  him  doctor ;  but 
he  was  not  employed  in  the  sloop  as  a  surgeon,  but 
was  going  to  Barbadoes  to  get  a  birth,  as  the  sailors 
call  it.  However,  he  had  all  his  surgeon's  chest  on 
board,  and  we  made  him  go  with  us,  and  take  all  his 
implements  with  him.     He  was  a  comic  fellow  indeed. 


Captain  Singleton  93 

a  man  of  very  good  solid  sense,  and  an  excellent 
surgeon ;  but,  what  was  worth  all,  very  good  humoured, 
and  pleasant  in  his  conversation,  and  a  bold  stout 
fellow  too,  as  any  we  had  among  us. 

I  found  William,  as  I  thought,  not  very  averse  to 
go  along  with  us,  and  yet  resolved  to  do  it  so  that  it 
might  be  apparent  he  was  taken  away  by  force ;  and, 
to  this  purpose,  he  comes  to  me  :  '  Friend,'  says  he, 
'  thou  sayest  I  must  go  with  thee,  and  it  is  not  in  my 
power  to  resist  thee,  if  I  would ;  but  I  desire  thou 
wilt  oblige  the  master  of  the  sloop  which  I  am  on 
board,  to  certify  under  his  hand,  that  I  was  taken 
away  by  force,  and  against  my  will.'  And  this  he 
said  with  so  much  satisfaction  in  his  face,  that  I 
could  not  but  understand  him.  '  Ay,  ay,'  says  1, 
'  whether  it  be  against  your  will  or  no,  I'll  make  him 
and  all  the  men  give  you  a  certificate  of  it,  or  I'll  take 
them  all  along  with  us,  and  keep  them  till  they  do.' 
So  I  drew  up  the  certificate  myself,  wherein  I  wrote 
that  he  was  taken  away  by  main  force,  as  a  prisoner, 
by  a  pirate  ship  ;  that  they  carried  away  his  chest  and 
instruments  first,  and  then  bound  his  hands  behind 
him,  and  forced  him  into  their  boat ;  and  this  was 
signed  by  the  master  and  all  his  men. 

Accordingly,  I  fell  a  swearing  at  him,  and  called  to 
my  men  to  tie  his  hands  behind  him,  and  so  we  put 
him  into  our  boat,  and  carried  him  away.  When  I 
had  him  on  board,  I  called  him  to  me;  'Now,  friend,' 


94  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

says  I,  '  I  have  brought  you  away  by  force,  it  is  true, 
but  I  am  not  of  the  opinion  I  have  brought  you  away 
so  much  against  your  will  as  they  imagine :  come,' 
says  I,  '  you  will  be  a  useful  man  to  us,  and  you  shall 
have  very  good  usage  among  us.'  So  I  unbound  his 
hands,  and  first  ordered  all  things  that  belonged  to 
him  to  be  restored  to  him,  and  our  captain  gave  him 
a  dram. 

'Thou  hast  dealt  friendly  by  me,'  says  he,  'and  I 
will  be  plain  with  thee,  whether  I  came  willingly  to 
thee  or  not.  I  shall  make  myself  as  useful  to  thee 
as  I  can ;  but  thou  knowest  it  is  not  my  business  to 
meddle  when  thou  art  to  fight.'  'No,  no,'  says  the 
captain,  '  but  you  may  meddle  a  little  when  we  share 
the  money.'  'Those  things  are  useful  to  furnish  a 
surgeon's  chest,'  says  WilHam,  and  smiled,  'but  I  shall 
be  moderate.' 

In  short,  William  was  a  most  agreeable  companion ; 
but  he  had  the  better  of  us  in  this  part,  that,  if  we 
were  taken,  we  were  sure  to  be  hanged,  and  he  was 
sure  to  escape  ;  and  he  knew  it  well  enough  :  but,  in 
short,  he  was  a  sprightly  fellow,  and  fitter  to  be 
captain  than  any  of  us.  I  shall  have  often  an  occa- 
sion to  speak  of  him  in  the  rest  of  the  story. 

Our  cruising  so  long  in  these  seas  began  now  to 
be  so  well  known,  that,  not  in  England  only,  but  in 
France  and  Spain,  accounts  had  been  made  public 
of  our   adventures,  and   many  stories   told,   how  we 


Captain  Singleton  95 

murdered  the  people  in  cold  blood,  tying  them  back 
to  back  and  throwing  them  into  the  sea  :  one  half  of 
which,  however,  was  not  true,  though  more  was  done 
than  it  is  fit  to  speak  of  here. 

The  consequence  of  this  however,  was,  that  several 
English  men  of  war  were  sent  to  the  West  Indies, 
and  were  particularly  instructed  to  cruise  in  the  bay 
of  Mexico,  and  the  gulf  of  Florida,  and  among  the 
Bahama  islands,  if  possible,  to  attack  us.  We  were 
not  so  ignorant  of  things  as  not  to  expect  this,  after 
so  long  a  stay  in  that  part  of  the  world ;  but  the  first 
certain  account  we  had  of  them  was  at  Honduras, 
when  a  vessel,  coming  in  from  Jamaica,  told  us  that 
two  English  men  of  war  were  coming  directly  from 
Jamaica  thither  in  quest  of  us.  We  were  indeed  as 
it  were  embayed,  and  could  not  have  made  the  least 
shift  to  have  got  off,  if  they  had  come  directly  to  us ; 
but  as  it  happened,  somebody  had  informed  them 
that  we  were  in  the  bay  of  Campeachy,  and  they  went 
directly  thither,  by  which  we  were  not  only  free  of 
them,  but  were  so  much  to  the  windward  of  them 
that  they  could  not  make  any  attempt  upon  us,  though 
they  had  known  we  were  there. 

We  took  this  advantage,  and  stood  away  for 
Carthagena,  and  from  thence  with  great  difficulty 
beat  it  up  at  a  distance  from  under  the  shore  of  St. 
Martha,  till  we  came  to  the  Dutch  island  of  Curasoe, 
and  from  thence  to  the  island  of  Tobago ;  which,  as 


96  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

before,  was  our  rendezvous ;  and  it  being  a  deserted, 
uninhabited  island,  we  at  the  same  time  made  use  of  it 
for  a  retreat :  here  the  captain  of  the  brigantine  died, 
and  Captain  Harris,  at  that  time  my  lieutenant,  took 
the  command  of  the  brigantine. 

Here  we  came  to  a  resolution  to  go  away  to  •  the 
coast  of  Brazil,  and  from  thence  to  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  so  for  the  East  Indies :  but  Captain 
Harris,  as  I  have  said,  being  now  captain  of  the 
brigantine,  alleged  that  his  ship  was  too  small  for  so 
long  a  voyage;  but  that,  if  Captain  Wilmot  would 
consent,  he  would  take  the  hazard  of  another  cruise, 
and  he  would  follow  us  in  the  first  ship  he  could 
take :  so  we  appointed  our  rendezvous  to  be  at 
Madagascar,  which  was  done  by  my  recommendation 
of  the  place,  and  the  plenty  of  provisions  to  be  had 
there. 

Accordingly  he  went  away  from  us  in  an  evil  hour ; 
for,  instead  of  taking  a  ship  to  follow  us,  he  was  taken, 
as  I  heard  afterwards,  by  an  English  man-of-war,  and 
being  laid  in  irons,  died  of  mere  grief  and  anger  be- 
fore he  came  to  England.  His  lieutenant,  I  have 
heard,  was  afterwards  executed  in  England  for  a 
pirate,  and  this  was  the  end  of  the  man  who  first 
brought  me  into  this  unhappy  trade. 

We  parted  from  Tobago  three  days  after,  bending 
our  course  for  the  coast  of  Brazil,  but  had  not  been 
at  sea  above  twenty-four  hours  when  we  were  sepa- 


Captain  Singleton  97 

rated  by  a  terrible  storm,  which  held  three  days,  with 

'very  little  abatement  or  intermission.     In  this  juncture 

Captain  Wilmot  happened  unluckily  to  be  on  board 

my  ship,  very  much  to  his  mortification  ;  for  we  not 

only  lost  sight  of  his  ship,  but  never  saw  her  more  till 

we  came  to  Madagascar,  where  she  was  cast  away. 

In  short,  after  having  in  this  tempest  lost  our  fore-top- 

imast,   we   w^ere   forced    to   put   back    to   the   isle   of 

[iTobago  for  shelter,  and  to  repair  our  damage,  which 

brought  us  all  very  near  our  destruction. 

We  were  no  sooner  on  shore  here,  and  all  very 
busy  looking  out  for  a  piece  of  timber  for  a  top-mast, 
but  we  perceived,  standing  in  for  the  shore,  an  English 
man-of-war  of  thirty-six  guns  :  it  was  a  great  surprise 
o  us  indeed,  because  we  were  disabled  so  much  ;  but 
to  our  great  good  fortune,  we  lay  pretty  snug  and 
lose  among  the  high  rocks,  and  the  man-of-w^ar  did 
lot  see  us,  but  stood  off  again  upon  his  cruise  :  so 
A^e  only  observed  which  way  she  went,  and  at  night, 
eaving  our  work,  resolved  to  stand  off  to  sea,  steering 
:he  contrary  way  from  that  which  we  observed  she 
vent;  and  this  we  found  had  the  desired  success,  for 
ve  saw  him  no  more.  We  had  gotten  an  old  mizen 
op-mast  on  board,  which  made  us  a  jury  fore-top- 
nast  for  the  present ;  and  so  we  stood  away  for  the 
sle  of  Trinidad,  w^here,  though  there  were  Spaniards 
>n  shore,  yet  we  landed  some  men  with  our  boat, 
.nd  cut  a  very  good  piece  of  fir  to  make  us  a  new 

H 


98  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

top-mast,  which  we  got  fitted  up  effectually ;  and  also 
we  got  some  cattle  here  to  eke  out  our  provisions ; 
and,  caUing  a  council  of  war  among  ourselves,  we 
resolved  to  quit  those  seas  for  the  present,  and  steer 
away  for  the  coast  of  Brazil. 

The  first  thing  we  attempted  here  was  only  getting 
fresh  water  :  but  we  learnt  that  there  lay  the  Portu- 
guese fleet  at  the  bay  of  All  Saints,  bound  for  Lisbon, 
ready  to  sail,  and  only  waiting  for  a  fair  wind.  This 
made  us  lie  by,  wishing  to  see  them  put  to  sea,  and, 
accordingly,  as  they  were  with  or  without  convoy,  to 
attack  or  avoid  them. 

It  sprung  up  a  fresh  gale  in  the  evening,  at  S.W. 
by  W.,  which,  being  fair  for  the  Portugal  fleet,  and 
the  weather  pleasant  and  agreeable,  we  heard  the 
signal  given  to  unmoor,  and,  running  in  under  the 
island  of  Si ,  we  hauled  our  main-sail  and  fore- 
sail up  in  the  brails,  lowered  the  top-sail  upon  the 
cap,  and  clewed  them  up,  that  we  might  lie  as  snug 
as  we  could,  expecting  their  coming  out,  and  the  next 
morning  saw  the  whole  fleet  come  out  accordingly, 
but  not  at  all  to  our  satisfaction,  for  they  consisted  of 
twenty-six  sail,  and  most  of  them  ships  of  force  as 
well  as  burthen,  both  merchantmen  and  men-of-war ; 
so,  seeing  there  was  no  meddling,  we  lay  still  where 
we  were  also,  till  the  fleet  was  out  of  sight,  and  theni 
stood  off  and  on,  in  hopes  of  meeting  with  further) 
purchase. 


Captain  Singleton  99 

It  was  not  long  before  we  saw  a  sail,  and  immedi- 
ately gave  her  chase ;   but  she   proved  an  excellent 

j  sailor,  and,  standing  out  to  sea,  we  saw  plainly  she 

Intrusted   to   her   heels — that   is   to   say,   to   her  sails. 

j  However,  as  we  were  a  clean  ship,  we  gained  upon 
her,  though  slowly,  and,  had  we  had  a  day  before  us, 

\  we  should  certainly  have  come  up  with  her ;  but  it 
grew  dark  apace,  and  in  that  case  we  knew  we  should 
lose  sight  of  her. 

Our   merry  quaker,   perceiving   us   to   crowd   still 

after  her  in  the  dark,  wherein  we  could  not  see  which 

i  ' 

way  she  went,  came  very  drily  to  me  :  '  Friend  Single- 
ton,' says  he,  '  dost  thee  know  what  we  are  doing  ? ' 
Says  I,  'Yes,  why  we  are  chasing  yon  ship,  are  we 
not  ?'  '  And  how  dost  thou  know  that  ? '  says  he,  very 
gravely  still.  'Nay,  that's  true,'  says  I  again,  'we 
cannot  be  sure.'  'Yes,  friend,'  says  he,  'I  think  we 
may  be  sure  that  we  are  running  away  from  her — not 
chasing  her.  I  am  afraid,'  adds  he,  'thou  art  turned 
[quaker,  and  hast  resolved  not  to  use  the  hand  of 
power,  or  art  a  coward,  and  art  flying  from  thy 
enemy.' 

'What  do  you  mean?'  says  I  (I  think  I  swore  at 
him) ;  '  what  do  ye  sneer  at  now  ?  you  have  always 
one  dry  rub  or  another  to  give  us.' 

'Nay,'  says  he,  'it  is  plain  enough  the  ship  stood 
off  to  sea  due  east,  on  purpose  to  lose  us,  and  thou 
mayest  be  sure  her  business  does  not  lie  that  way ; 


100  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

for  what  should  she  do  at  the  coast  of  Africa  in  this 
latitude,  which  should  be  as  far  south  as  Congo  or 
Angola?  But  as  soon  as  it  is  dark,  that  we  shall 
lose  sight  of  her,  she  will  tack,  and  stand  away  west 
again  for  the  Brazil  coast,  and  for  the  bay,  where, 
thou  knowest,  she  was  going  before ;  and  are  we  not 
then  running  away  from  her  ?  I  am  greatly  in  hopes, 
friend,'  says  the  dry  gibing  creature,  '  thou  wilt  turn 
quaker,  for  I  see  thou  art  not  for  fighting.' 

'  Very  well,  William,'  says  I,  '  then  I  shall  make  an 
excellent  pirate.'  However,  William  was  in  the  right, 
and  I  apprehended  what  he  meant  immediately ;  and 
Captain  Wilmot,  who  lay  very  sick  in  his  cabin,  over- 
hearing us,  understood  him  as  well  as  I,  and  called 
out  to  me  that  William  was  right,  and  it  was  our  best 
way  to  change  our  course,  and  stand  away  for  the 
bay,  where  it  was  ten  to  one  but  we  should  snap  her 
in  the  morning. 

Accordingly,  we  went  about  ship,  got  our  larboard 
tacks  on  board,  set  the  top-gallant  sails,  and  crowded 
for  the  bay  of  All  Saints,  where  we  came  to  an  anchor, 
early  in  the  morning,  just  out  of  gunshot  of  the  forts. 
We  furled  our  sails  with  rope-yarns,  that  we  might 
haul  home  the  sheets  without  going  up  to  loose  them, 
and,  lowering  our  main  and  fore  yards,  looked  just  as 
if  we  had  lain  there  a  good  while. 

In  two  hours  after  we  saw  our  game  standing  in 
for  the  bay  with  all  the  sail  she  could  make,  and  she 


I  Captain  S-ingleton  itJi 

;  came  innocently  into  our  very  mdutlis,  Tor  we  lay  still 
,  till  we  saw  her  almost  within  gunshot,  when  our  fore- 
mast geers  being  stretched  fore  and  aft,  we  first  ran 
I  up  our   yards,  and   then   hauled   home   the   top -sail 
sheets ;  the  rope-yarns  that  furled  them  giving  way  of 
themselves,  the  sails  were  set  in  a  few  minutes ;  at 
I  the  same  time  slipping  our  cable,  we  came  upon  her 
\  before  she  could  get  under  way  upon  the  other  tack. 
They  were  so  surprised  that  they  made  little  or  no 
resistance,  but  struck  after  the  first  broadside. 

We  were  considering  what  to  do  with  her,  when 

William  came  to  me  :   '  Hark  thee,  friend,'  says  he, 

'  thou  hast  made  a  fine  piece  of  work  of  it  now,  hast 

thou  not  ?     To  borrow  thy  neighbour's  ship  here  just 

•  at   thy  neighbour's  door,  and   never   ask   him   leave. 

I  Now,  dost  thou  not  think  there  are  some  men-of-war 

in  the  port  ?     Thou  hast  given  them  the  alarm  suffi- 

I  ciently ;  thou  wilt  have  them  upon  thy  back  before 

night,  depend   upon  it,  to  ask  thee  wherefore   thou 

didst  so.' 

'Truly,  William,'  said  I,  'for  aught  I  know  that 
:  may  be  true.  What,  then,  shall  we  do  next  ? '  Says 
\  he,  '  Thou  hast  but  two  things  to  do,  either  to  go  in 
I  and  take  all  the  rest,  or  else  get  thee  gone  before 
i  they  come  out  and  take  thee ;  for  I  see  they  are 
j  hoisting  a  top-mast  to  yon  great  ship,  in  order  to  put 
!to  sea  immediately,  and  they  won't  be  long  before 
I  they  come  to  talk  with  thee ;  and  what  wilt  thou  say 


1 33  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

to  them  when  they  ask  thee  why  thou  borrowest  their 
ship  without  leave  ? ' 

As  WilHam  said,  so  it  was  :  we  could  see  by  our 
glasses  they  were  all  in  a  hurry,  manning  and  fitting 
some  sloops  they  had  there,  and  a  large  man-of-war, 
and  it  was  plain  they  would  soon  be  with  us ;  but  we 
were  not  at  a  loss  what  to  do.  We  found  the  ship 
we  had  taken  was  loaden  with  nothing  considerable 
for  our  purpose,  except  some  cocoa,  some  sugar,  and 
twenty  barrels  of  flour ;  the  rest  of  her  loading  was 
hides ;  so  we  took  out  all  we  thought  for  our  turn, 
and,  among  the  rest,  all  her  ammunition,  great  shot, 
and  small  arms,  and  turned  her  off;  we  also  took  a 
cable  and  three  anchors  she  had,  which  were  for  our 
purpose,  and  some  of  her  sails.  She  had  enough 
left  just  to  carry  her  into  port,  and  that  was  all. 

Having  done  this,  we  stood  on  upon  the  Brazil 
coast,  southward,  till  we  came  to  the  mouth  of  the 
river  Janeiro  :  but,  as  we  had  two  days  the  wind 
blowing  hard  at  S.E.  and  S.S.E.,  we  were  obliged  to 
come  to  an  anchor  under  a  little  island  and  wait  for 
a  wind.  In  this  time,  the  Portuguese  had,  it  seems, 
given  notice  over  land  to  the  governor  there,  that  a 
pirate  was  upon  the  coast ;  so  that,  when  we  came  in 
view  of  the  port,  we  saw  two  men-of-war  riding  just 
without  the  bar,  whereof  one  we  found  was  getting 
under  sail  with  all  possible  speed,  having  slipt  her 
cable,  on  purpose  to  speak  with  us  \  the  other  was 


Captain  Singleton  103 

.not  so  forward,  but  was  preparing  to  follow:   in  less 
I  than  an  hour  they  stood  both  fair  after  us,  with  all 
the  sail  they  could  make. 

Had  not  the  night  come  on,  William's  words  had 

been  made  good  ;  they  would  certainly  have  asked  us 

the  question  what  we  did  there?  for  we  found  the 

foremost  ship  gained  upon  us,   especially  upon  one 

tack ;  for  we   plied   away   from   them  to  windward ; 

but  in  the  dark  losing  sight  of  them,  we  resolved  to 

change  our  course,  and  stand  away  directly  to  sea, 

not  doubting  but  we  should  lose  them  in  the  night. 

1        Whether  the  Portuguese  commander  guessed  we 

!  would  do  so  or  no,  I  know  not;  but  in  the  morning, 

i  when  the  daylight  appeared,   instead  of  having  lost 

i  him,  we  found  him  in  chase  of  us,  about  a  league 

i  astern  ;  only,  to  our  great  good  fortune,  we  could  see 

i  but  one  of  the  two ;  however,  this  one  was  a  great 

'  ship,  carried   six  and  forty  guns,   and  an  admirable 

i  sailor,  as  appeared  by  her  outsailing  us ;  for  our  ship 

I  was  an  excellent  sailor  too,  as  I  have  said  before. 

j        When   I   found   this,   I   easily  saw   there  was  no 

,  remedy,  but  we  must  engage ;  and,  as  we  knew  we 

I  could  expect  no  quarter  from   those  scoundrels  the 

I  Portuguese,  a  nation  I  had  an  original  aversion  to,  I 

\  let  Captain  Wilmot  know  how  it  was.      The  captain, 

sick  as  he  was,  jumped  up  in  the  cabin,  and  would 

be  led  out  upon  the  deck  (for  he  was  very  weak)  to 

see  how  it  was.      'Well,'  says  he,  'we'll  fight  them.' 


I04  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

Our  men  were  all  in  good  heart  before ;  but,  to 
see  the  captain  so  brisk,  who  had  lain  ill  of  a  calen- 
ture ten  or  eleven  days,  gave  them  double  courage, 
and  they  went  all  hands  to  work  to  make  a  clear  ship 
and  be  ready.  William  the  quaker  comes  to  me 
with  a  kind  of  smile  :  '  Friend,'  says  he,  '  what  does 
yon  ship  follow  us  for?'  'Why,'  says  I,  'to  fight  us, 
you  may  be  sure.'  '  Well,'  says  he,  '  and  will  she  come 
up  with  us,  dost  thou  think?'  'Yes,'  said  I,  'you 
see  she  will.'  '  Why,  then,  friend,'  says  the  dry  wretch, 
'  why  dost  thou  run  from  her  still,  when  thou  seest 
she  will  overtake  thee?  will  it  be  better  for  us  to  be 
overtaken  farther  off  than  here  ? '  '  Much  at  one  for 
that,'  says  I;  'why,  what  would  you  have  us  do?' 
'  Do ! '  says  he,  '  let  us  not  give  the  poor  man  more 
trouble  than  needs  must ;  let  us  stay  for  him,  and 
hear  what  he  has  to  say  to  us.'  '  He  will  talk  to  us 
in  powder  and  ball,'  said  I.  'Very  well,  then,'  says 
he,  '  if  that  be  his  country  language  we  must  talk  to 
him  in  the  same,  must  we  not  ?  or  else  how  shall  he 
understand  us  ? '  '  Very  well,  William,'  says  I, '  we  under- 
stand you.'  And  the  captain,  as  ill  as  he  was,  called 
to  me,  '  William's  right  again,'  says  he,  '  as  good  here 
as  a  league  farther.'  So  he  gave  a  word  of  command, 
'  Haul  up  the  mainsail ;  we'll  shorten  sail  for  him.' 

Accordingly  we  shortened  sail ;  and,  as  we  expected 
her  upon  our  lee-side,  we  being  then  upon  our  star- 
board   tack,    brought    eighteen   of   our   guns   to   the 


I 


Captain  Singleton  105 

larboard  side,  resolving  to  give  him  a  broadside  that 
should  warm  him ;  it  was  about  half  an  hour  before 
he  came  up  with  us,  all  which  time  we  luffed  up,  that 
we  might  keep  the  wind  of  him,  by  which  he  was 
obliged  to  run  up  under  our  lee,  as  we  designed  him ; 
when  we  got  him  upon  our  quarter  we  edged  down, 
and  received  the  fire  of  five  or  six  of  his  guns ;  by 
this  time  you  may  be  sure  all  our  hands  were  at  their 
quarters,  so  we  clapped  our  helm  hard  a-weather,  let 
go  the  lee-braces  of  the  main  top-sail,  and  laid  it  a- 
back,  and  so  our  ship  fell  athwart  the  Portuguese 
ship's  hawse ;  then  we  immediately  poured  in  our 
broadside,  raking  them  fore  and  aft,  and  killed  them 
a  great  many  men. 

The  Portuguese,  we  could  see,  were  in  the  utmost 
confusion ;  and,  not  being  aware  of  our  design,  their 
ship  having  fresh  way,  ran  their  bowsprit  into  the 
fore  part  of  our  main  shrouds,  as  that  they  could  not 
easily  get  clear  of  us,  and  so  we  lay  locked  after  that 
manner ;  the  enemy  could  not  bring  above  two  or 
three  guns,  besides  their  small  arms,  to  bear  upon  us, 
while  we  played  our  whole  broadside  upon  him. 

In  the  middle  of  the  heat  of  this  fight,  as  I  was 
very  busy  upon  the  quarter-deck,  the  captain  calls  to 
me,  for  he  never  stirred  from  us,  '  What  the  devil  is 
friend  William  a-doing  yonder?'  says  the  captain, 
'has  he  any  business  upon  deck?'  I  stept  forward, 
and  there  was  friend  William,  with  two  or  three  stout 


io6  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

fellows,  lashing  the  ship's  bowsprit  fast  to  our  main- 
mast, for  fear  they  should  get  away  from  us  ;  and 
every  now  and  then  he  pulled  a  bottle  out  of  his 
pocket,  and  gave  the  men  a  dram  to  encourage  them. 
The  shot  flew  about  his  ears  as  thick  as  may  be 
supposed  in  such  an  action,  where  the  Portuguese,  to 
give  them  their  due,  fought  very  briskly,  believing  at 
first  they  were  sure  of  their  game,  and  trusting  to 
their  superiority ;  but  there  was  William,  as  composed, 
and  in  as  perfect  tranquillity  as  to  danger,  as  if  he 
had  been  over  a  bowl  of  punch,  only  very  busy  secur- 
ing the  matter,  that  a  ship  of  forty-six  guns  should 
not  run  away  from  a  ship  of  eight-and-twenty. 

This  work,  was  too  hot  to  hold  long;  our  men 
behaved  bravely ;  our  gunner,  a  gallant  man,  shouted 
below,  pouring  in  his  shot  at  such  a  rate  that  the 
Portuguese  began  to  slacken  their  fire ;  we  had  dis- 
mounted several  of  their  guns  by  firing  in  at  their 
forecastle,  and  raking  them,  as  I  said,  fore  and  aft ; 
and  presently  comes  William  up  to  me  :  '  Friend,' 
says  he,  very  calmly,  '  what  dost  thou  mean  ?  Why 
dost  thou  not  visit  thy  neighbour  in  the  ship,  the 
door  being  open  for  thee?'  I  understood  him  im- 
mediately, for  our  guns  had  so  torn  their  hull  that 
we  had  beat  two  port-holes  into  one,  and  the  bulk- 
head of  their  steerage  was  split  to  pieces,  so  that  they 
could  not  retire  to  their  close  quarters ;  I  then  gave 
the  word  immediately  to  board  them.     Our  second 


Captain  Singleton  107 

lieutenant,  with  about  thirty  men,  entered  in  an  instant 
over  the  forecastle,  followed  by  some  more,  with  the 
boatswain,  and  cutting  in  pieces  about  twenty-five 
men  that  they  found  upon  the  deck,  and  then,  throw- 
ing some  grenadoes  into  the  steerage,  they  entered 
there  also  \  upon  which  the  Portuguese  cried  quarter 
presently,  and  we  mastered  the  ship,  contrary  indeed 
to  our  own  expectation ;  for  we  would  have  com- 
pounded with  them  if  they  would  have  sheered  off, 
but  laying  them  athwart  the  hawse  at  first,  and  follow- 
ing our  fire  furiously,  without  giving  them  any  time  to 
get  clear  of  us,  and  work  their  ship ;  by  this  means, 
though  they  had  six-and-forty  guns,  they  were  not  able 
to  point  them  forward,  as  I  said  above,  for  we  beat 
them  immediately  from  their  guns  in  the  forecastle, 
and  killed  them  abundance  of  men  between  decks,  so 
that,  when  we  entered,  they  had  hardly  found  men 
enough  to  fight  us  hand  to  hand  upon  their  deck. 

The  surprise  of  joy,  to  hear  the  Portuguese  cry 
quarter,  and  see  their  ancient  struck,  was  so  great  to 
our  captain,  who,  as  I  have  said,  was  reduced  very 
weak  with  a  high  fever,  that  it  gave  him  new  life. 
Nature  conquered  the  distemper,  and  the  fever  abated 
that  very  night ;  so  that  in  two  or  three  days  he  was 
sensibly  better,  his  strength  began  to  come,  and  he 
was  able  to  give  his  orders  effectually  in  everything 
that  was  material,  and  in  about  ten  days  was  entirely 
well,  and  about  the  ship. 


io8  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

In  the  meantime  I  took  possession  of  the  Portu- 
guese man-of-war ;  and  Captain  Wilmot  made  me, 
or  rather  I  made  myself,  captain  of  her  for  the  present. 
About  thirty  of  their  seamen  took  service  with  us, 
some  of  whom  were  French,  some  Genoese  ;  and  we 
set  the  rest  on  shore  the  next  day,  on  a  httle  island 
on  the  coast  of  Brazil,  except  some  wounded  men, 
who  were  not  in  a  condition  to  be  removed,  and 
whom  we  were  bound  to  keep  on  board ;  but  we  had 
an  occasion  afterwards  to  dispose  of  them  at  the  Cape, 
where,  at  their  own  request,  we  set  them  on  shore. 

Captain  Wilmot,  as  soon  as  the  ship  was  taken, 
and  the  prisoners  stowed,  was  for  standing  in  for  the 
river  Janeiro  again,  not  doubting  that  we  should 
meet  with  the  other  man-of-war,  who,  not  having  been 
able  to  find  us,  and  having  lost  the  company  of  her 
comrade,  would  certainly  be  returned,  and  might  be 
surprised  by  the  ship  we  had  taken,  if  we  carried 
Portuguese  colours ;  and  our  men  were  all  for  it. 

But  our  friend  William  gave  us  better  counsel ;  for 
he  came  to  me  ;  '  Friend,'  says  he,  '  I  understand  the 
captain  is  for  sailing  back  to  the  Rio  Janeiro,  in 
hopes  to  meet  with  the  other  ship  that  was  in  chase 
of  thee  yesterday.  Is  it  true,  dost  thou  intend  it  ? ' 
'  Why,  yes,'  says  I,  '  William,  pray  why  not  ?  '  '  Nay,' 
says  he,  '  thou  mayest  do  so  if  thou  wilt.'  '  Well,  I 
know  that  too,  William,'  said  I ;  '  but  the  captain  is 
a  man  who  will  be  ruled  by  reason ;  what  have  you 


Captain  Singleton  109, 

to  say  to  it  ?  '  '  Why,'  says  William,  gravely,  '  I  only 
ask  what  is  thy  business,  and  the  business  of  all  the 
people  thou  hast  with  thee  ?  Is  it  not  to  get  money  ?' 
'Yes,  William,  it  is  so,  in  our  honest  way.'  'And 
wouldst  thou,'  says  he,  'rather  have  money  without 
fighting,  or  fighting  without  money  ?  I  mean,  which 
wouldst  thou  have  by  choice,  suppose  it  to  be  left  to 
thee?'  'O  William,'  says  I,  'the  first  of  the  two,  to 
be  sure.'  'Why  then,'  says  he,  'what  great  gain  hast 
thou  made  of  the  prize  thou  hast  taken  now,  though 
it  has  cost  thee  the  lives  of  thirteen  of  thy  men, 
besides  some  hurt  ?  It  is  true  thou  hast  got  the 
ship  and  some  prisoners ;  but  thou  wouldst  have  had 
twice  the  booty  in  a  merchant  ship,  with  not  one 
quarter  of  the  fighting ;  and  how  dost  thou  know 
either  what  force,  or  what  number  of  men,  may  be  in 
the  other  ship,  and  what  loss  thou  mayest  suffer,  and 
what  gain  it  shall  be  to  thee  if  thou  take  her?  I 
think  indeed  thou  mayest  much  better  let  her  alone.' 
'  Why,  William,  it  is  true,'  said  I,  'and  I'll  go  tell 
the  captain  what  your  opinion  is,  and  bring  you  word 
what  he  says.'  Accordingly  I  went  to  the  captain, 
and  told  him  William's  reasons ;  and  the  captain  was 
of  his  mind — that  our  business  was  indeed  fighting 
when  we  could  not  help  it,  but  that  our  main  affair 
was  money,  and  that  with  as  few  blows  as  we  could. 
So  that  adventure  was  laid  aside,  and  we  stood  along- 
shore again  south  for  the  river  de  la  Plata,  expecting 


no  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

some  purchase  thereabouts ;  especially  we  had  our 
eyes  upon  some  of  the  Spanish  ships  from  Buenos 
Ayres,  which  are  generally  very  rich  in  silver,  and 
one  such  prize  would  have  done  our  business.  We 
plied  about  here,  in  the  latitude  of  near  22  degrees 
south,  for  near  a  month,  and  nothing  offered ;  and 
here  we  began  to  consult  what  we  should  do  next,  for 
we  had  come  to  no  resolution  yet.  Indeed,  my 
design  was  always  for  the  Cape  de  Bona  Speranza, 
and  so  to  the  East  Indies.  I  had  heard  some  flaming 
stories  of  Captain  Avery,  and  the  fine  things  he  had 
done  in  the  Indies,  which  were  doubled  and  doubled, 
even  ten  thousandfold  :  and  from  taking  a  great  prize 
in  the  bay  of  Bengal,  where  he  took  a  lady,  said  to 
be  the  Great  Mogul's  daughter,  with  a  great  quantity 
of  jewels  about  her,  we  had  a  story  told  us  that  he 
took  a  Mogul  ship,  so  the  foolish  sailors  called  it, 
loaden  with  diamonds. 

I  would  fain  have  had  friend  William's  advice — 
whither  we  should  go ;  but  he  always  put  it  off  with 
some  quaking  quibble  or  other.  In  short,  he  did 
not  care  for  directing  us  neither.  Whether  he  made 
a  piece  of  conscience  of  it,  or  whether  he  did  not 
care  to  venture  having  it  come  against  him  afterwards, 
or  no,  this  I  know  not ;  but  we  concluded  at  last 
without  him. 

^t  *  *  *  * 

At  last,  our  old  never-failing  friend,  William,  helped 


Captain  Singleton 


HI 


us  out  again,  as  he  had  often  done  at  a  dead-Uft. 
His  proposal  was  this,  that  he  should  go  as  master 
of  the  ship,  and  about  twenty  men,  such  as  we  could 
best  trust,  and  attempt  to  trade  privately,  upon  the 
coast  of  Brazil,  with  the  planters,  not  at  the  principal 
ports,  because  that  would  not  be  admitted. 

We  all  agreed  to  this,  and  appointed  to  go  away 
ourselves  towards  the  Rio  de  la  Plata,  where  we  had 
thought  of  going  before,  and  to  wait  for  him,  not 
I  there,  but  at  Port  St.  Pedro,  as  the  Spaniards  call 
it,  lying  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  which  they  call 
Rio  Grande,  and  where  the  Spaniards  had  a  small 
fort  and  a  few  people,  but  we  believe  there  was 
nobody  in  it. 

Here  we  took  up  our  station,  cruising  off  and  on, 
to  see  if  we  could  meet  any  ships  going  to,  or 
coming  from,  Buenos  Ay  res,  or  the  Rio  de  la  Plata ; 
but  we  met  with  nothing  worth  notice.  However, 
we  employed  ourselves  in  things  necessary  for  our 
going  off  to  sea  ;  for  we  filled  all  our  water-casks, 
and  got  some  fish  for  our  present  use,  to  spare  as 
much  as  possible  our  ship's  stores. 

William,  in  the  meantime,  went  away  to  the  north, 
and  made  the  land  about  the  Cape  of  St.  Thomas ; 
and,  betwixt  that  and  the  isles  of  Tuberon,  he  found 
means  to  trade  with  the  planters  for  all  his  negroes,  as 
well  the  women  as  the  men,  and  at  a  very  good  price 
too  ;  for  William,  who  spoke  Portuguese  pretty  well. 


112  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

told  them  a  fair  story  enough,  that  the  ship  was  in 
scarcity  of  provisions,  that  they  were  driven  a  great^ 
way  out  of  their  way,  and  indeed,  as  we  say,  out  of 
their  knowledge,  and  that  they  must  go  up  to  the 
northward  as  far  as  Jamaica,  or  sell  there  upon 
the  coast.  This  was  a  very  plausible  tale,  and  was 
easily  believed ;  and,  if  you  observe  the  manner  of 
the  negroes'  sailing,  and  what  happened  in  their 
voyage,  was  every  word  of  it  true. 

By  this  method,  and  being  true  to  one  another, 
William  past  for  what  he  was  ;  I  mean  for  a  very 
honest  fellow,  and,  by  the  assistance  of  one  planter, 
who  sent  to  some  of  his  neighbour  planters,  and 
managed  the  trade  among  themselves,  he  got  a 
quick  market ;  for  in  less  than  five  weeks  William 
sold  all  his  negroes,  and  at  last  sold  the  ship  itself, 
and  shipped  himself  and  his  twenty  men,  with  two 
negro  boys  whom  he  had  left,  in  a  sloop,  one  of 
those  which  the  planters  used  to  send  on  board 
for  the  negroes.  With  this  sloop.  Captain  William, 
as  we  then  called  him,  came  away,  and  found  us 
at  Port  St.  Pedro,  in  the  latitude  of  32  degrees 
30  minutes  south. 

Nothing  was  more  surprising  to  us  than  to  see 
a  sloop  come  along  the  coast,  carrying  Portuguese 
colours,  and  come  in  directly  to  us,  after  we  were 
assured  he  had  discovered  both  our  ships.  We  fired 
a  gun,  upon  her  nearer  approach,  to  bring  her  to  an 


Captain  Singleton  113 

anchor,  but  immediately  she  fired  five  guns  by  way 
"of  salute,  and  spread  her  English  ancient :  then  we 
began  to  guess  it  was  friend  William.,  but  wondered 
what  was  the  meaning  of  his  being  in  a  sloop, 
whereas  we  sent  him  away  in  a  ship  of  near  three 
hundred  tons ;  but  he  soon  let  us  into  the  whole 
history  of  his  management,  with  which  we  had  a 
great  deal  of  reason  to  be  very  well  satisfied.  As 
soon  as  he  had  brought  the  sloop  to  an  anchor  he 
came  aboard  of  my  ship,  and  there  he  gave  us  an 
account  how  he  began  to  trade,  by  the  help  of  a 
Portuguese  planter,  who  lived  near  the  sea-side ;  how 
he  went  on  shore,  and  went  up  to  the  first  house  he 
could  see,  and  asked  the  man  of  the  house  to  sell 
him  some  hogs,  pretending  at  first  he  only  stood  in 
upon  the  coast  to  take  in  fresh  water,  and  buy  some 
provisions ;  and  the  man  not  only  sold  him  seven 
fat  hogs,  but  invited  him  in,  and  gave  him,  and  five 
men  he  had  met  with,  a  very  good  dinner;  and  he 
invited  the  planter  on  board  his  ship,  and,  in  return 
for  his  kindness,  gave  him  a  negro  girl. 

This  so  obliged  the  planter,  that  the  next  morning 
he  sent  him  on  board,  in  a  great  luggage-boat,  a  cow 
and  two  sheep,  with  a  chest  of  sweetmeats,  and  some 
sugar,  and  a  great  bag  of  tobacco,  and  invited  Captain 
William  on  shore  again  :  that,  after  this,  they  grew 
from  one  kindness  to  another  ;  that  they  began  to 
talk  about  trading  for  some  negroes ;  and  William^ 

I 


114  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

pretending  it  was  to   do   him  service,  consented  toJ 
sell    him   thirty   negroes   for   his   private   use   in   his* 
plantation,  for  which  he  gave  William  ready  money 
in  gold,  at  the  rate  of  five  and  thirty  moidores  per 
head ;    but    the    planter    was    obliged    to    use    great 
caution   in   the  bringing  them  on  shore :   for  which 
purpose,    he    made    William    weigh    and    stand    out 
to   sea,  and   put   in   again,  about   fifty  miles  farther 
north,  where,  at  a  little  creek,  he  took  the  negroes  f 
on  shore  at  another  plantation,  belonging  to  a  friend 
of  his,  whom,  it  seems,  he  could  trust. 

This  remove  brought  William  into  a  further 
intimacy,  not  only  with  the  first  planter,  but  also 
with  his  friends,  who  desired  to  have  some  of  the 
negroes  also ;  so  that,  from  one  to  another,  they 
bought  so  many,  till  one  overgrown  planter  took  a 
hundred  negroes,  which  was  all  William  had  left, 
and  sharing  them  with  another  planter,  that  other 
planter  chaffered  with  William  for  ship  and  all, 
giving  him  in  exchange  a  very  clean,  large,  well- 
built  sloop  of  near  sixty  tons,  very  well  furnished, 
carrying  six  guns ;  but  we  made  her  afterwards 
carry  twelve  guns.  William  had  three  hundred 
moidores  in  gold,  besides  the  sloop,  in  payment  for 
the  ship ;  and  with  this  money  he  stored  the  sloop 
as  full  as  she  could  hold  with  provisions,  especially 
bread,  some  pork,  and  about  sixty  hogs  alive  : 
among  the  rest,  William  got  eighty  barrels  of  good 


Captain  Singleton  115 

I, 

[gunpowder,  which  was  very  much  for  our  purpose ; 
land  all  the  provisions  which  were  in  the  French 
ship  he  took  out  also. 

I  This  was  a  very  agreeable  account  to  us,  especially 
when  we  saw  that  William  had  received  in  gold 
coined,  or  by  weight,  and  some  Spanish  silver,  sixty 
thousand  pieces  of  eight,  besides  a  new  sloop,  and 
a  vast  quantity  of  provisions. 

We  were  very  glad  of  the  sloop  in  particular,  and 
began  to  consult  what  we  should  do,  whether  we  had 
not  best  turn  off  our  great  Portuguese  ship,  and  stick 
to  our  first  ship  and  the  sloop,  seeing  we  had  scarce 
men  enough  for  all  three,  and  that  the  biggest  ship 
was  thought  too  big  for  our  business ;  how^ever, 
another  dispute,  which  was  now  decided,  brought 
ithe  first  to  a  conclusion.  The  first  dispute  w^as, 
Iw^hither  we  should  go  ?  My  comrade,  as  I  called 
'him  now,  that  is  to  say,  he  that  was  my  captain 
j  before  w^e  took  this  Portuguese  man-of-war,  was 
|for  going  to  the  South  Seas,  and  coasting  up  the 
jwest  side  of  America,  where  we  could  not  fail 
[of  making  several  good  prizes  upon  the  Spaniards ; 
land  that  then,  if  occasion  required,  we  might 
I  come  home  by  the  South  Seas  to  the  East  Indies, 
land  so  go  round  the  globe,  as  others  had  done 
j  before  us. 

But  my  head  lay  another  way  \  I  had  been  in  the 
East  Indies,  and  had  entertained  a  notion,  ever  since 


ii6  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

that,  that  if  we  went  thither  we  could  not  fail  of 
making  good  work  of  it,  and  that  we  might  have  a 
safe  retreat,  and  good  beef  to  victual  our  ship,  among 
my  old  friends  the  natives  of  Zanguebar,  on  the 
coast  of  Mozambique,  or  the  island  of  St.  Laurence : 
I  say,  my  thoughts  lay  this  way ;  and  I  read  so 
many  lectures  to  them  all,  of  the  advantages  they 
would  certainly  make  of  their  strength,  by  the  prizes 
they  would  take  in  the  gulf  of  Mocha,  or  the  Red 
Sea,  and  on  the  coast  of  Malabar,  or  the  bay  of 
Bengal,  that  I  amazed  them. 

With  these  arguments  I  prevailed  on  them,  and 
we  all  resolved  to  steer  away  S.E.  for  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope ;  and,  in  consequence  of  this  resolution, 
we  concluded  to  keep  the  sloop,  and  sail  with  all 
three,  not  doubting,  as  I  assured  them,  but  we 
should  find  men  there  to  make  up  the  number 
wanting,  and,  if  not,  we  might  cast  any  of  them  off 
when  we  pleased. 

We  could  not  do  less  than  make  our  friend 
William  captain  of  the  sloop,  which,  with  such  good 
management,  he  had  brought  us.  He  told  us, 
though  with  much  good  manners,  he  would  not 
command  her  as  a  frigate,  but,  if  we  would  give 
her  to  him  for  his  share  of  the  Guinea  ship,  which 
we  came  very  honestly  by,  he  would  keep  us  company 
as  a  victualler,  if  we  commanded  him,  as  long  as  he 
was  under  the  same  force  that  took  him  away. 


\ 


Captain  Smglefon  117 

We  understood  him,  so  we  gave  him  the  sloop, 
but  upon  condition  that  he  should  not  go  from  us, 
and  should  be  entirely  under  command :  however, 
William  was  not  so  easy  as  before ;  and  indeed,  as 
we  afterwards  wanted  the  sloop  to  cruise  for  purchase, 
and  a  right  thorough-paced  pirate  in  her,  so  I  was  in 
such  pain  for  William  that  I  could  not  be  without 
him,  for  he  was  my  privy-councillor  and  companion 
upon  all  occasions  ;  so  I  put  a  Scotsman,  a  bold 
enterprising  gallant  fellow,  into  her,  named  Gordon, 
and  made  her  carry  twelve  guns,  and  four  petereroes, 
though,  indeed,  we  wanted  men,  for  we  were  none 
of  us  manned  in  proportion  to  our  force. 

{A?id  this  was  the  way  William  made  Singleton 
leave  off  piracy,  deserting  his  men.) 

'  Wilt  thou  give  me  leave,'  says  William,  '  to  talk 

plainly   with   thee   upon    thy   present   circumstances, 

and   thy   future   prospect   of   living ;    and   wilt    thou 

promise,  on  thy  word,  to  take  nothing  ill  of  me?' 

I       '  With   all   my   heart,'   said   I,    '  William ;   I   have 

!  always  found   your  advice  good  ;   and   your  designs 

I  have  not  only  been  well  laid,  but  your  counsel  has 

I  been    very    lucky    to    us ;    and    therefore    say    what 

I  you  will,  I  promise  you  I  will  not  take  it  ill.' 

'  But  that  is  not  all  my  demand,'  says  William ; 
'  if  thou  dost  not  like  what  I  am  going  to  propose 


ii8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

to  thee,  thou  shalt  promise  me  not  to  make  it  pubHc 
among  the  men.' 

'  I  will  not,   William,'  says   I,   '  upon  my  word ; 
and  swore  to  him  too  very  heartily. 

'  Why  then,'  says  William,  '  I  have  but  one  thing ' 
more  to  article  with  thee  about,  and  that  is,  that 
thou  wilt  consent,  that,  if  thou  dost  not  approve  of 
it  for  thyself,  thou  wilt  yet  consent  that  I  shall  put 
so  much  of  it  in  practice  as  relates  to  myself  and  my 
new  comrade  doctor,  so  that  it  be  in  nothing  to  thy 
detriment  and  loss.' 

'In  anything,'  says  I,  'William,  but  leaving  me, 
I  will ;  but  I  cannot  part  with  you  upon  any  terms 
whatever.' 

'  Well,'  says  William,  '  I  am  not  designing  to  part 
from  thee,  unless  it  is  thy  own  doing ;  but  assure 
me  in  all  these  points,  and  I  will  tell  my  mind 
freely.' 

So  I  promised  him  everything  he  desired  of  me, 
in  the  most  solemn  manner  possible,  and  so  seriously 
and  frankly  withal,  that  William  made  no  scruple 
to  open  his  mind  to  me. 

'  Why  then,  in  the  first  place,'  says  Wilham, 
'  shall  I  ask  thee  if  thou  dost  not  think  thou  and 
all  thy  men  are  rich  enough,  and  have  really  gotten 
as  much  wealth  together  (by  w^hatsoever  way  it  has 
been  gotten,  that  is  not  the  question),  as  ye  all  know 
what  to  do  with?' 


Captain  Singleton  119 

'  Why,   truly,   William,'  said   I,    '  thou   art   pretty 

.  right ;  I  think  we  have  had  pretty  good  luck.' 

'        '  Well  then,'  says  William,  '  I  would  ask,  whether, 

i  if  thou  hast  gotten  enough,  thou  hast  any  thought  of 

leaving   off   this    trade ;    for   most    people    leave   off 

trading   when    they   are    satisfied    with    getting,    and 

are   rich    enough  ;    for   nobody   trades   for   the   sake 

of  trading  ;  much  less  do  any  men  rob  for  the  sake 

of  thieving.' 

'Well,  William,'  says  I,  'now  I  perceive  what  it 
is  thou  art  driving  at :  I  warrant  you,'  says  I,  '  you 
begin  to  hanker  after  home.' 

'  Why,  truly,'  says  William,  '  thou  hast  said  it, 
and  so  I  hope  thou  dost  too.  It  is  natural  for  most 
men  that  are  abroad  to  desire  to  come  home  again 
at  last,  especially  when  they  are  grown  rich,  and 
when  they  are  (as  thou  ownest  thyself  to  be)  rich 
enough,  and  so  rich,  as  they  know  not  what  to  do 
with  more,  if  they  had  it.' 

'  Well,  William,'  said  I,  '  but  now  you  think  you 
have  laid  your  preliminary  at  first  so  home,  that  I 
should  have  nothing  to  say ;  that  is,  that  when 
I  had  got  money  enough,  it  would  be  natural  to 
think  of  going  home ;  but  you  have  not  explained 
what  you  mean  by  home ;  and  there  you  and  I  shall 
differ.  Why,  man,  I  am  at  home ;  here  is  my 
habitation  ;  I  never  had  any  other  in  my  lifetime  : 
I  was  a  kind  of  a  charity-school  boy ;  so  that  I  can 


120  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

have  no  desire  of  going  anywhere  for  being  rich  or 
poor,  for  I  have  nowhere  to  go.' 

'  Why,'  says  WilHam,  looking  a  httle  confused, 
'art  not  thou  an  EngHshman?' 

'Yes,'   says    I,    'I    think    so;    you    see    I    speak 
Enghsh  :   but  I  came  out  of  England  a  child,  and 
never  was  in  it  but  once  since  I  was  a  man ;  and   J 
then   I  was   cheated   and   imposed   upon,   and  used 
so  ill  that  I  care  not  if  I  never  see  it  more.' 

'Wh)^,  hast  thou  no  relations  or  friends  there?' 
says  he :  'no  acquaintance ?  none  that  thou  hast 
any  kindness,  or  any  remains  of  respect  for?' 

'  Not  I,  William,'  said  I ;  '  not  one,  more  than  I 
have  in  the  court  of  the  Great  Mogul.' 

'  Nor  any  kindness  for  the  country  where  thou 
wast  born?'  says  William. 

'  Not  I,  any  more  than  for  the  island  of  Mada- 
gascar, nor  so  much  neither ;  for  that  has  been  a 
fortunate  island  to  me  more  than  once,  as  thou 
knowest,  William,'  said  I. 

William  was  quite  stunned  at  my  discourse,  and 
held  his  peace ;  and  I  said  to  him,  '  Go  on,  Williarh ; 
w^hat  hast  thou  to  say  further?  for  I  hear  you  have 
some  project  in  your  head,'  says  I ;  '  come,  let's  have 
it  out.' 

'  Nay,'  says  William,  '  thou  hast  put  me  to  silence, 
and  all  I  had  to  say  is  overthrown ;  all  my  projects 
are  come  to  nothing,  and  gone.' 


Captain  Singleton  121 

'Well,  but,  William,'  said  I,  'let  me  hear  what 
they  were ;  for  though  it  is  so  that  what  I  have  to 
aim  at  does  not  look  your  way,  and  though  I  have 
no  relation,  no  friend,  no  acquaintance  in  England, 
yet  I  do  not  say  I  like  this  roving,  cruising  life  so 
well  as  never  to  give  it  over  ;  let  me  hear  if  thou 
canst  propose  to  me  anything  beyond  it.' 

'  Certainly,  friend,'  says  William,  very  gravely, 
'  there  is  something  beyond  it ; '  and  lifting  up  his 
hands,  he  seemed  very  much  affected,  and  I  thought 
I  saw  tears  standing  in  his  eyes ;  but  I,  that  was  too 
hardened  a  wretch  to  be  moved  with  these  things, 
laughed  at  him.  '  What ! '  says  I,  '  you  mean  death, 
I  warrant  you ;  don't  you  ?  that  is  beyond  this  trade. 
Why,  when  it  comes,  it  comes ;  then  we  are  all 
provided  for.' 

'  Aye,'  says  William,  '  that  is  true ;  but  it  would 
be  better  that  some  things  were  thought  on  before 
that  came.' 

'Thought  on  !'  says  I ;  'what  signifies  thinking  of 
it  ?  To  think  of  death,  is  to  die ;  and  to  be  always 
thinking  of  it,  is  to  be  all  one's  life  long  a-dying  : 
j  it  is  time  enough  to  think  of  it  when  it  comes.' 

You  will  easily  believe  I  was  well  qualified  for  a 

^  pirate,  that  could  talk  thus ;  but  let  me  leave  it  upon 

record,  for  the  remark  of  other  hardened  rogues  like 

myself      My  conscience  gave  me  a  pang  that  I  had 

never    felt    before,    when    I    said  —  'What    signifies 


122  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

thinking  of  it?'  and  told  me  I  should  one  day 
think  of  these  words  with  a  sad  heart ;  but  the  time 
of  my  reflection  was  not  yet  come ;  so  I  went  on. 

Says  William,  very  seriously,  '  I  must  tell  thee, 
friend,  I  am  sorry  to  hear  thee  talk  so  ;  they  that 
never  think  of  dying  often  die  without  thinking 
of  it.' 

I  carried  on  the  jesting  way  a  while  further,  and 
said — 'Prithee  do  not  talk  of  dying;  how  do  we 
know  we  shall  ever  die?'  and  began  to  laugh. 

'  I  need  not  answer  thee  to  that,'  says  William ; 
'  it  is  not  my  place  to  reprove  thee  who  art  com- 
mander over  me  here  ;  but  I  had  rather  thou  wouldst 
talk  otherwise  of  death ;  it  is  a  coarse  thing.' 

'  Say  anything  to  me,  William,'  said  I,  '  I  will 
take  it  kindly.'  I  began  now  to  be  very  much 
moved  at  his  discourse. 

Says  William  (tears  running  down  his  face),  '  It 
is  because  men  live  as  if  they  were  never  to  die, 
that  so  many  die  before  they  know  how  to  live ;  but 
it  was  not  death  that  I  meant,  when  I  said, — That 
there  was  something  to  be  thought  of  beyond  this 
way  of  living.' 

'Why,  William,'  said  I,  'what  was  that?' 

'  It  was  repentance,'  says  he. 

'  Why,'  says  I,  '  did  you  ever  know  a  pirate 
repent?' 

At  this  he  started  a  Httle,  and  returned, — '  At  the 


Captain  Singleton  123 

gallows  I  have  known  one  repent,  and  I  hope  thou 
wilt  be  the  second' 

He  spoke  this  very  affectionately,  with  an  appear- 
ance of  concern  for  me. 

'  Well,  William,'  says  I,  '  I  thank  you,  and  I  am 
not  so  senseless  of  these  things,  perhaps,  as  I  make 
myself  seem  to  be  ;  but  come,  let  me  hear  your 
proposal.' 

'  My  proposal,'  says  William,  '  is  for  thy  good,  as 
well  as  my  own.  We  may  put  an  end  to  this  kind 
of  life,  and  repent ;  and  I  think  the  fairest  occasion 
offers  for  both,  at  this  very  time,  that  ever  did,  or 
ever  will,  or  indeed  can  happen  again.' 

'  Look  you,  William,'  says  I,  '  let  me  have  your 
proposal  for  putting  an  end  to  our  present  way  of 
living  first,  for  that  is  the  case  before  us,  and  you 
and  I  will  talk  of  the  other  afterward.  I  am  not 
so  insensible,'  said  I,  '  as  you  may  think  me  to  be ; 
but  let  us  get  out  of  this  heUish  condition  we  are 
in  first.' 

'  Nay,'  says  William,  '  thou  art  in  the  right  there  ; 
we  must  never  talk  of  repenting  while  we  continue 
pirates.' 

'Well,'  says  I,  'William,  that  is  what  I  meant; 
for  if  we  must  not  reform,  as  well  as  be  sorry  for 
what  is  done,  I  have  no  notion  what  repentance 
means  :  indeed,  at  best  I  know  little  of  the  matter ; 
but  the  nature  of  the  thing  seems  to  tell  me,  that 


124  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

the  first  step  we  have  to  take  is  to  break  off  this 
wretched  course ;  and  I'll  begin  there  with  you,  with 
all  my  heart.' 

I  could  see  by  his  countenance  that  William  was 
thoroughly  pleased  with  the  offer ;  and  if  he  had 
tears  in  his  eyes  before,  he  had  more  now ;  but  it 
was  from  a  quite  different  passion  ;  for  he  was  so 
swallowed  up  with  joy  he  could  not  speak. 

'  Come,  William,'  says  I,  '  thou  showest  me  plain 
enough  thou  hast  an  honest  meaning.  Dost  thou 
think  it  is  practicable  for  us  to  put  an  end  to  our 
unhappy  way  of  living  here,  and  get  off?' 

'  Yes,'  says  he,  '  I  think  it  is  very  practicable  for 
me ;  whether  it  is  for  thee  or  no,  that  will  depend 
upon  thyself.' 

'  Well,'  says  I,  '  I  give  you  my  word,  that  as  I 
have  commanded  you  all  along,  from  the  time 
I  first  took  you  on  board,  so  you  shall  command 
me  from  this  hour,  and  everything  you  direct  me 
I'll  do.' 

'  Wilt  thou  leave  it  all  to  me  ?  Dost  thou  say 
this  freely  ? ' 

'Yes,  William,'  says  I,  'freely;  and  I'll  perform  it 
faithfully.' 

'Why  then,'  says  William,  'my  scheme  is  this: — 
We  are  now  at  the  mouth  of  the  gulf  of  Persia ;  we 
have  sold  so  much  of  our  cargo  here  at  Surat,  that  we 
have  money  enough  :  send  me  away  for  Bassora  with 


Captain  Singleton  125 

the  sloop,  loaden  with  the  China  goods  we  have  on 
board,  which  will  make  another  good  cargo,  and  I'll 
warrant  thee  I'll  find  means,  among  the  English  and 
the  Dutch  merchants  there,  to  lodge  a  quantity  of 
goods  and  money  also  as  a  merchant,  so  as  we  will  be 
able  to  have  recourse  to  it  again  upon  any  occasion  ; 
and  when  I  come  home  we  will  contrive  the  rest ; 
and  in  the  meantime  do  you  bring  the  ship's  crew 
to  take  a  resolution  to  go  to  Madagascar  as  soon  as 
I  return.' 

I  told  him  I  thought  he  need  not  go  so  far  as 
Bassora,  but  might  run  into  Gombaroon,  or  to  Ormus, 
and  pretend  the  same  business. 

'  No,'  says  he,  '  I  cannot  act  with  the  same  freedom 
there,  because  the  Company's  factory  are  there,  and  I 
may  be  laid  hold  of  there,  on  pretence  of  interloping.' 

'  Well,  but,'  said  I,  '  you  may  go  to  Ormus  then ; 
for  I  am  loath  to  part  with  you  so  long  as  to  go  to 
the  bottom  of  the  Persian  Gulf.'  He  returned,  that  I 
should  leave  it  to  him  to  do  as  he  should  see  cause. 

{They  levant  accordingly,  and  make  much  motiey  as 
7ner chants  ;  but  Singleton's  conscience  grows  troublesome) 

It  was  during  my  being  here,  for  here  we  stayed 
near  two  months,  that  I  grew  very  thoughtful  about 
my  circumstances ;  not  as  to  the  danger,  neither 
indeed  were  we  in  any,  but  were  entirely  concealed 


126  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  unsuspected ;  but  I  really  began  to  have  other 
thoughts  of  myself,  and  of  the  world,  than  ever  I  had 
before. 

William  had  struck  so  deep  into  my  unthinking 
temper,  with  hinting  to  me  that  there  was  something 
beyond  all  this ;  that  the  present  time  was  the  time 
of  enjoyment,  but  that  the  time  of  account  approached; 
that  the  work  that  remained  was  gentler  than  the 
labour  past,  viz.  repentance,  and  that  it  was  high 
time  to  think  of  it :  I  say  these,  and  such  thoughts  as 
these,  engrossed  my  hours,  and,  in  a  word,  I  grew 
very  sad. 

As  to  the  wealth  I  had,  which  was  immensely 
great,  it  was  all  like  dirt  under  my  feet ;  I  had  no 
value  for  it,  no  peace  in  the  possession  of  it,  no  great 
concern  about  me  for  the  leaving  of  it. 

William  had  perceived  my  thoughts  to  be  troubled, 
and  my  mind  heavy  and  oppressed  for  some  time ; 
and  one  evening,  in  one  of  our  cool  walks,  I  began 
with  him  about  the  leaving  our  effects.  William  was 
a  wise  and  wary  man ;  and  indeed  all  the  prudentials 
of  my  conduct  had  for  a  long  time  been  owing  to  his 
advice,  and  so  now  all  the  methods  for  preserving  our 
effects,  and  even  ourselves,  lay  upon  him ;  and  he 
had  been  teUing  me  of  some  of  the  measures  he  had 
been  taking  for  our  making  homeward,  and  for  the 
security  of  our  wealth,  when  I  took  him  very  short. 
'  Why,  William,'  says  I,  '  dost  thou  think  we  shall  ever 


Captain  Singleton  127 

be  able  to  reach  Europe  with  all  this  cargo  that  we 
have  about  us  ? ' 

'  Aye,'  says  William,  '  without  doubt,  as  well  as 
other  merchants  with  theirs,  as  long  as  it  is  not 
publicly  known  what  quantity  or  of  what  value  our 
cargo  consists.' 

'Why,  William,'  says  I,  smiling,  'do  you  think 
that,  if  there  is  a  God  above,  as  you  have  so  long 
been  telling  me  there  is,  and  that  we  must  give  an 
account  to  Him ;  I  say,  do  you  think,  if  He  be  a 
righteous  judge.  He  will  let  us  escape  thus  with  the 
plunder,  as  we  may  call  it,  of  so  many  innocent 
people,  nay,  I  might  say  nations,  and  not  call  us  to 
an  account  for  it  before  we  can  get  to  Europe,  where 
we  pretend  to  enjoy  it  ?  ' 

William  appeared  struck  and  surprised  at  the 
question,  and  made  no  answer  for  a  great  while ;  and 
I  repeated  the  question,  adding  that  it  was  not  to  be 
expected. 

After  a  little  pause,  says  William,  'Thou  hast 
started  a  very  weighty  question,  and  I  can  make  no 
positive  answer  to  it ;  but  I  will  state  it  thus  :  first,  it 
is  time  that,  if  we  consider  the  justice  of  God,  we 
have  no  reason  to  expect  any  protection ;  but  as  the 
ordinary  ways  of  Providence  are  out  of  the  common 
road  of  human  affairs,  so  we  may  hope  for  mercy  still 
upon  our  repentance,  and  we  know  not  how  good 
He  may  be  to  us ;  so  we  are  to  act  as  if  we  rather 


128  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

depended  upon  the  last,  I  mean  the  merciful  part, 
than  claimed  the  first,  which  must  produce  nothing 
but  judgment  and  vengeance.' 

'  But  hark  ye,  William,'  says  I,  '  the  nature  of 
repentance,  as  you  hinted  once  to  me,  included  re- 
formation ;  and  we  can  never  reform  ;  how  then  can 
we  repent  ? ' 

'  Why  can  we  never  reform  ? '  says  William. 

'  Because,'  said  I,  '  we  cannot  restore  what  we  have 
taken  away  by  rapine  and  spoil.' 

'  It  is  true,'  says  William,  '  we  can  never  do  that ; 
for  we  can  never  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
owners.' 

'  But  what  then  must  be  done  with  our  wealth,' 
said  I,  '  the  effects  of  plunder  and  rapine  ?  If  we 
keep  it,  we  continue  to  be  robbers  and  thieves ;  and 
if  we  quit  it,  we  cannot  do  justice  with  it,  for  we  can- 
not restore  it  to  the  right  owners.' 

'Nay,'  says  William,  "'the  answer  to  it  is  short. 
To  quit  what  we  have,  and  do  it  here,  is  to  throw  it 
away  to  those  who  have  no  claim  to  it,  and  to  divest 
ourselves  of  it,  but  to  do  no  right  with  it ;  whereas  we 
ought  to  keep  it  carefully  together,  with  a  resolution 
to  do  what  right  with  it  we  are  able ;  and  who  knows 
what  opportunity  Providence  may  put  into  our  hands, 
to  do  justice,  at  least,  to  some  of  those  we  have  in- 
jured ;  so  we  ought,  at  least,  to  leave  it  to  Him,  and 
go  on.     As  it  is,  without  doubt,  our  present  business 


Captain  Smgleton  129 

is  to  go  to  some  place  of  safety,  where  we  may  wait 
His  will.' 

This  resolution  of  William  was  very  satisfying  to 
me  indeed,  as,  the  truth  is,  all  he  said,  and  at  all 
times,  was  solid  and  good  ;  and  had  not  William  thus, 
as  it  were,  quieted  my  mind,  I  think,  verily,  I  was  so 
alarmed  at  the  just  reason  I  had  to  expect  vengeance 
from  Heaven  upon  me  for  my  ill-gotten  wealth,  that  I 
should  have  run  away  from  it  as  the  devil's  goods, 
that  I  had  nothing  to  do  with,  that  did  not  belong  to 
me,  and  that  I  had  no  right  to  keep,  and  was  in 
certain  danger  of  being  destroyed  for. 

However,  William  settled  my  mind  to  more  prudent 
steps  than  these,  and  I  concluded  that  I  ought,  how- 
ever, to  proceed  to  a  place  of  safety,  and  leave  the 
event  to  God  Almighty's  mercy ;  but  this  I  must 
leave  upon  record,  that  I  had,  from  this  time,  no  joy 
of  the  wealth  I  had  got ;  I  looked  upon  it  as  stolen, 
and  so  indeed  the  greatest  part  of  it  was ;  I  looked 
upon  it  as  a  hoard  of  other  men's  goods,  which  I 
had  robbed  the  innocent  owners  of,  and  which  I 
ought,  in  a  word,  to  be  hanged  for  here,  and  damned 
for  hereafter ;  and  now,  indeed,  I  began  sincerely  to 
hate  myself  for  a  dog;  a  wretch,  that  had  been  a 
thief,  and  a  murderer ;  a  wretch,  that  was  in  a  condi- 
tion which  nobody  was  ever  in ;  for  I  had  robbed, 
and  though  I  had  the  wealth  by  me,  yet  it  was 
impossible  I  should  ever  make  any  restitution ;  and 

K 


130  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

upon  this  account  it  ran  in  my  head  that  I  could 
never  repent,  for  that  repentance  could  not  be  sincere 
without  restitution,  and  therefore  must  of  necessity  be 
damned ;  there  was  no  room  for  me  to  escape ;  I 
went  about  with  my  heart  full  of  these  thoughts,  little 
better  than  a  distracted  fellow ;  in  short,  running 
headlong  into  the  most  dreadful  despair,  -and  pre- 
meditating nothing  but  how  to  rid  myself  out  of  the 
world ;  and,  indeed,  the  devil,  if  such  things  are  of 
the  devil's  immediate  doing,  followed  his  work  very 
close  with  me ;  and  nothing  lay  upon  my  mind  for 
several  days  but  to  shoot  myself  into  the  head  with 
my  pistol. 

I  was  all  this  while  in  a  vagrant  life,  among 
infidels,  Turks,  pagans,  and  such  sort  of  people ;  I 
had  no  minister,  no  Christian  to  converse  with,  but 
poor  William  ;  he  was  my  ghostly  father,  or  confessor  ; 
and  he  was  all  the  comfort  I  had.  As  for  my  know- 
ledge of  religion,  you  have  heard  my  history ;  you 
may  suppose  I  had  not  much ;  and,  as  for  the  word 
of  God,  I  don't  remember  that  I  ever  read  a  chapter 
in  the  Bible  in  my  hfetime ;  I  was  httle  Bob  at 
Busselton,  and  went  to  school  to  learn  my  Testament. 

However,  it  pleased  God  to  make  William  the 
quaker  everything  to  me.  Upon  this  occasion  I  took 
him  out  one  evening,  as  usual,  and  hurried  him  away 
into  the  fields  with  me,  in  more  haste  than  ordinary ; 
and  there,  in  short,  I  told  him  the  perplexity  of  my 


\ 


Captaifi  Singleton  131 

mind,  and  under  what  terrible  temptations  of  the  devil 
I  had  been  ;  that  I  must  shoot  myself,  for  I  could  not 
support  the  weight  and  terror  that  was  upon  me. 

'  Shoot  yourself ! '  says  William ;  '  why,  what  will 
that  do  for  you  ?  ' 

'  Why,'  says  I,  '  it  will  put  an  end  to  a  miserable 
life.' 

'  Well,'  says  William,  '  are  you  satisfied  the  next 
will  be  better  ?  ' 

'No,  no,'  says  I,  'much  worse,  to  be  sure.' 

'Why  then,'  says  he,  'shooting  yourself  is  the 
devil's  motion,  no  doubt ;  for  it  is  the  devil  of  a 
reason,  that,  because  thou  art  in  an  ill  case,  therefore 
thou  must  put  thyself  into  a  worse.' 

This  shocked  my  reason  indeed.  '  Well  but,'  says 
I,  '  there  is  no  bearing  the  miserable  condition  I 
am  in.' 

'Very  well,'  says  William;  'but  it  seems  there  is 
some  bearing  a  worse  condition ;  and  so  you  will 
shoot  yourself,  that  you  may  be  past  remedy  ? ' 

'  I  am  past  remedy  already,'  says  I. 

'  How  do  you  know  that  ? '  says  he. 

'  I  am  satisfied  of  it,'  said  I. 

'  Well,'  says  he,  '  but  you  are  not  sure ;  so  you  will 
shoot  yourself  to  make  it  certain ;  for,  though  on  this 
side  death  you  cannot  be  sure  you  will  be  damned 
at  all,  yet  the  moment  you  step  on  the  other  side  of 
time  you  are  sure  of  it ;  for  when  it  is  done,  it  is  not 


132  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

to  be  said  then  that  you  will  be,  but  that  you  are 
damned.' 

'  Well,  but,'  says  William,  as  if  he  had  been  between 
jest  and  earnest,  '  pray,  what  didst  thou  dream  of  last 
night  ? ' 

'  Why,'  said  I,  '  I  had  frightful  dreams  all  night ; 
and,  particularly,  I  dreamed  that  the  devil  came  for 
me,  and  asked  me  what  my  name  was  ?  and  I  told 
him.  Then  he  asked  me  what  trade  I  was  ? 
"Trade!"  says  I;  "I  am  a  thief,  a  rogue,  by  my 
calling;  I  am  a  pirate,  and  a  murderer,  and  ought  to 
be  hanged."  "  x\y,  ay,"  says  the  devil,  "so  you  do; 
and  you  are  the  man  I  looked  for,  and  therefore 
come  along  with  me;"  at  which,  I  was  most  horribly 
frightened,  and  cried  out,  so  that  it  waked  me ;  and 
I  have  been  in  horrible  agony  ever  since.' 

'Very  well,'  says  William;  'come,  give  me  the 
pistol  thou  talkedst  of  just  now.' 

'  Why,'  says  I,  '  what  will  you  do  with  it  ? ' 

'Do  with  it!'  says  William,  'why,  thou  needest 
not  shoot  thyself;  I  shall  be  obliged  to  do  it  for  thee  : 
why,  thou  wilt  destroy  us  all.' 

'  What  do  you  mean,  William  ? '  said  I. 

'  Mean  ! '  said  he  ;  '  nay,  what  didst  thou  mean,  to 
cry  out  aloud  in  thy  sleep,  I  am  a  thief,  a  pirate,  a 
murderer,  and  ought  to  be  hanged  ?  Why,  thou  wilt 
ruin  us  all ;  'twas  well  the  Dutchman  did  not  under- 
stand English.      In  short,  I  must  shoot  thee,  to  save 


Captain  Singleton  133 

my  own  life:  come,  come,'  says  he,  'give  me  thy 
pistol.' 

I  confess  this  terrified  me  again  another  way ;  and 
I  began  to  be  sensible,  that,  if  anybody  had  been 
near  me  to  understand  English,  I  had  been  undone. 
The  thought  of  shooting  myself  forsook  me  from  that 
time ;  and  I  turned  to  William ;  '  You  disorder  me 
extremely,  William,'  said  I ;  '  why  I  am  never  safe, 
nor  is  it  safe  to  keep  me  company ;  What  shall  I  do  ? 
I  shall  betray  you  all.' 

'Come,  come,  friend  Bob,'  says  he,  'I'll  put  an 
end  to  it  all,  if  you  will  take  my  advice.' 

'  How's  that  ? '  said  I. 

'Why,  only,'  says  he,  'that  the  next  time  thou 
talkest  with  the  devil,  thou  wilt  talk  a  little  softlier,  or 
we  shall  be  all  undone,  and  you  too.' 

This  frightened  me,  I  must  confess,  and  allayed  a 
great  deal  of  the  trouble  of  mind  I  was  in ;  but 
William,  after  he  had  done  jesting  with  me,  entered 
upon  a  very  long  and  serious  discourse  with  me  about 
the  nature  of  my  circumstances,  and  about  repent- 
ance ;  that  it  ought  to  be  attended,  indeed,  with  a 
deep  abhorrence  of  the  crime  that  I  had  to  charge 
myself  with  ;  but  that  to  despair  of  God's  mercy  was 
no  part  of  repentance,  but  putting  myself  into  the 
condition  of  the  devil;  indeed,  that  I  must  apply  my- 
self with  a  sincere  humble  confession  of  my  crime,  to 
ask  pardon  of  God,  whom  I  had  offended,  and  cast 


^ 


134  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

myself  upon  His  mercy,  resolving  to  be  willing  to 
make  restitution,  if  ever  it  should  please  God  to  put 
it  in  my  power,  even  to  the  utmost  of  what  I  had  in 
the  world ;  and  this,  he  told  me,  was  the  method 
which  he  had  resolved  upon  himself;  and  in  this,  he 
told  me,  he  had  found  comfort. 

I  had  a  great  deal  of  satisfaction  in  William's  dis- 
course, and  it  quieted  me  very  much ;  but  William 
was  very  anxious  ever  after  about  my  talking  in  my 
sleep,  and  took  care  to  lie  with  me  always  himself, 
and  to  keep  me  from  lodging  in  any  house  where  so 
much  as  a  word  of  English  was  understood. 

{For  William^  as  will  be  seen,  understood  how  to 
make  the  best  of  both  worlds.) 


IL— 'MOLL  FLANDERS' 

{In  my  judgment  Moll  Flanders  is  not  only  the 
most  re7narkable  of  Defoe! s  minor  novels,  but  the  most 
remarkable  example  of  pure  reaUsTji  in  literature.  To 
read  any  one  of  M.  Zola^s  much-talked-of  books,  and 
then  to  return  to  this,  is  to  see  the  difference  between 
talent  enisled  by  theory  and  genius  conducted  by  art. 
The  book  is  of  course  not  wholly  edifying,  containing 
as  it  does  the  history  of  a  woman  who  allows  herself  to 
be  led  astray  by  vanity  and  cupidity  quite  as  nmch  as 
by  passion  in  early  youth ;  and  who  afterwards  for^ 
more  than  forty  years  lives  the  life  of  an  adventuress, 
ending  {or  all  but  ending,  for  there  is  a  fnal  rehabili- 
tation) as  a  cotnmon  thief.  But  the  nature  of  it  is 
astonishing,  a?id  the  art  more  astonishing  still.  The^ 
author  made  some  apology  for  the  crudity  of  the  sce?tes ; 
and  this  crudity,  being  of  course  more  strongly  apparent 
710W,  makes  selection  a  little  difficult.  But  Jhe  two 
following  passages  are  still  fairly  representative.      The 


136  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

separation  of  them  from  the  story  does  no  harm,  for 
there  is  hardly  any  plot,  though  tlure  is  a  certaifi  con- 
catenation of  episode. 

In  the  earlier  part  of  the  book  the  heroine  has  married, 
lost  her  first  husband  {the  brother  of  her  first  lover), 
and  being  relieved  of  her  children  by  the  family,  is 
left  to  herself  in  London,  a  young  widow  of  four- 
and- twenty,  with  some  money,  no  principles,  and  a 
distinct  inclination  to  make  the  most  of  herself  She 
passes  thence  through  divers  hands,  and  when  this  ex- 
tract opens  is  already  in  middle  age,  but  still  handsome. 
She  has  been  persuaded  by  a  more  artful  adventuress, 
whom  she  met  at  Bath,  to  go  to  Lancashire ;  she  does 
so,  and  is  introduced  to  the  woniaris  brother,  with  a 
curious  7'esult  of' '  cross-biting.^)^  •  • .  . ,  ^ 

Well,VI/went  with  my  friend  as  I  called  her,  into 
Lancashire ;  all  the  way  we  went  she  caressed,  me' 
with  the  utmost  appearance  of  a  sincere  undissembled 
affection ;  treated  me,  except  my  coach-hire,  all  the 
way ;  and  her  brother  brought  a  gentleman's  coach 
to  Warrington  to  receive  us,  and  we  were  carried 
from  thence  to  Liverpool  with  as  much  ceremony  as 
I  could  desire. 

We  were  also  entertained  at  a  merchant's  house 
in  Liverpool  three  or  four  days  very  handsomely ;  I, 
forbear  to  tell  his  name,  because  of  what  followed  i 
then  she  told  me  she  would  carry  me  to  an  uncle's 


^'^t^ 
^<^ 


Moll  Flanders  137 

house  of  hers  where  we  should  be  nobly  entertained ; 
and  her  uncle,  as  she  called  him,  sent  a  coach  and 
four  horses  for  us,  and  we  were  carried  near  forty 
miles  I  know  not  whither. 

We  came  however  to  a  gentleman's  seat,  where 
was  a  numerous  family,  a  large  park,  extraordinary 
company  indeed,  and  where  she  was  called  cousin ; 
I  told  her  if  she  had  resolved  to  bring  me  into  such 
company  as  this,  she  should  have  let  me  have  fur- 
nished myself  with  better  clothes ;  the  ladies  took 
notice  of  that,  and  told  me  very  genteelly  they  did 
not  value  people  in  their  own  country  so  much  by  their 
clothes  as  they  did  in  London ;  that  their  cousin  had 
fully  informed  them  of  my  quality,  and  that  I  did  not 
want  clothes  to  set  me  off;  in  short,  fhey  entertained 
me  not  like  what  I  was,  but  like  what  they  thought 
I  had  been,  namely,  a  widow  lady  of  a  great  fortune. 

The  first  discovery  I  made  here  was,  that  the 
family  were  all  Roman  Catholics,  and  the  cousin  too  ; 
however,  nobody  in  the  world  could  behave  better  to 
me,  and  I  had  all  the  civility  shown  that  I  could  have 
had  if  I  had  been  of  their  opinion.  The  truth  is,  I 
had  not  so  much  principle  of  any  kind,  as  to  be  nice 
in  point  of  religion  ;  and  I  presently  learned  to  speak 
favourably  of  the  Romish  church ;  particularly  I  told 
them  I  saw  little  but  the  prejudice  of  education  in 
all  the  differences  that  were  among  Christians  about 
religion,  and  if  it  had  so  happened  that. my  lather 


138  Defoe's  Alinor  Novels 

had  been  a  Roman  Catholic,  I  doubted  not  but  I 
should  have  been  as  well  pleased  with  their  religion 
as  my  own. 

This  obliged  them  in  the  highest  degree,  and  as  I 
was  besieged  day  and  night  with  good  company,  and 
pleasant  discourse,  so  I  had  two  or  three  old  ladies 
that  lay  at  me  upon  the  subject  of  religion  too ;  I 
was  so  complaisant  that  I  made  no  scruple  to  be 
present  at  their  mass,  and  to  conform  to  all  their 
gestures  as  they  showed  me  the  pattern,  but  I  would 
not  come  too  cheap ;  so  that  I  only  in  the  main 
encouraged  them  to  expect  that  I  would  turn  Roman 
Catholic  if  I  was  instructed  in  the  Catholic  doctrine, 
as  they  called  it ;  and  so  the  matter  rested. 

I  stayed  here  about  six  weeks ;  and  then  my 
conductor  led  me  back  to  a  country  village,  about 
six  miles  from  Liverpool,  where  her  brother,  as  she 
called  him,  came  to  visit  me  in  his  own  chariot,  with 
two  footmen  in  a  good  livery  ;  and  the  next  thing  was 
to  make  love  to  me.  As  it  happened  to  me,  one 
would  think  I  could  not  have  been  cheated,  and 
indeed  I  thought  so  myself,  having  a  safe  card  at 
home,  which  I  resolved  not  to  quit  unless  I  could 
mend  myself  very  much.  However,  in  all  appearance 
this  brother  was  a  match  worth  my  listening  to,  and 
the  least  his  estate  was  valued  at  was  ^1000  a  year, 
but  the  sister  said  it  was  worth  ;£^i5oo  a  year,  and 
lay  most  of  it  in  Ireland. 


Moll  Flanders  139 

I  that  was  a  great  fortune,  and  passed  for  such, 
was  above  being  asked  how  much  my  estate  was ; 
and  my  false  friend  taking  it  upon  a  foohsh  hearsay, 
had  raised  it  from  ^500  to  ^5000,  and  by  the  time 
she  came  into  the  country  she  called  it  ^^  15,000. 
The  Irishman,  for  such  I  understood  him  to  be,  was 
stark  mad  at  this  bait :  in  short,  he  courted  me,  made 
me  presents,  and  run  in  debt  hke  a  madman  for  the 
expenses  of  his  courtship  :  he  had,  to  give  him  his 
due,  the  appearance  of  an  extraordinary  fine  gentle- 
man ;  he  was  tall,  well-shaped,  and  had  an  extra- 
ordinary address ;  talked  as  naturally  of  his  park  and 
his  stables,  of  his  horses,  his  game-keepers,  his  woods, 
his  tenants,  and  his  servants,  as  if  he  had  been  in  a 
mansion-house,  and  I  had  seen  them  all  about  me. 

He  never  so  much  as  asked  me  about  my  fortune 
or  estate;  but  assured  me  that  when  we  came  to 
DubUn  he  would  jointure  me  in  ^600  a  year  in  good 
land ;  and  that  he  would  enter  into  a  deed  of  settle- 
ment, or  contract  here,  for  the  performance  of  it. 

This  was  such  language  indeed  as  I  had  not  been 
used  to,  and  I  was  here  beaten  out  of  all  my  measures; 
I  had  a  she-devil  in  my  bosom,  every  hour  telling  me 
how  great  her  brother  lived :  one  time  she  would 
come  for  my  orders,  how  I  would  have  my  coach 
painted,  and  how  lined;  and  another  time  what  clothes 
my  page  should  wear  :  in  short,  my  eyes  were  dazzled, 
I  had  now  lost  my  power  of  saying  no,  and  to  cut  the 


140  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

story  short,  I  consented  to  be  married ;  but  to  be 
more  private,  we  were  carried  farther  into  the  country, 
and  married  by  a  priest,  which  I  was  assured  would 
marry  us  as  effectually  as  a  Church  of  England  parson. 

But  the  glittering  show  of  a  great  estate  and  of 
fine  things  which  the  deceived  creature  that  was  now 
my  deceiver  represented  every  hour  to  my  imagination, 
hurried  me  away,  and  gave  me  no  time  to  think  of 
London,  or  of  anything  there,  much  less  of  the  obliga- 
tion I  had  to  a  person  of  infinitely  more  real  merit 
than  what  was  now  before  me. 

But  the  thing  was  done,  I  was  now  in  the  arms  of 
my  new  spouse,  who  appeared  still  the  same  as  before; 
great  even  to  magnificence,  and  nothing  less  than  a 
thousand  pounds  a  year  could  support  the  ordinary 
equipage  he  appeared  in. 

After  we  had  been  married  about  a  month  he 
began  to  talk  of  my  going  to  West-chester  in  order  to 
embark  for  Ireland.  However,  he  did  not  hurry  me, 
for  we  stayed  near  three  weeks  longer,  and  then  he 
sent  to  Chester  for  a  coach  to  meet  us  at  the  Black 
Rock,  as  they  call  it,  over  against  Liverpool.  Thither 
we  went  in  a  fine  boat  they  call  a  pinnace,  with  six 
oars  ;  his  servants,  and  horses,  and  baggage  going  in 
a  ferry-boat.  He  made  his  excuse  to  me  that  he 
had  no  acquaintance  at  Chester,  but  he  would  go 
before  and  get  some  handsome  apartments  for  me  at 
a  private  house ;  I  asked  him  how  long  we  should 


Moll  Flanders  141 

stay  at  Chester  ?  he  said,  not  at  all,  any  longer  than 
one  night  or  two,  but  he  would  immediately  hire  a 
coach  to  go  to  Holyhead  ;  then  I  told  him  he  should 
by  no  means  give  himself  the  trouble  to  get  private 
lodgings  for  one  night  or  two,  for  that  Chester  being 
a  great  place,  I  made  no  doubt  but  there  would  be 
very  good  inns,  and  accommodation  enough  ;  so  we 
lodged  at  an  inn  not  far  from  the  cathedral  \  I  forgot 
what  sign  it  was  at. 

Here  my  spouse,  talking  of  my  going  to  Ireland, 
asked  me  if  I  had  no  affairs  to  settle  at  London 
before  we  went  off;  I  told  him  no,  not  of  any  great 
consequence,  but  what  might  be  done  as  well  by  letter 
from  Dublin  :  '  Madam,'  says  he  very  respectfully,  '  I 
suppose  the  greatest  part  of  your  estate,  which  my 
sister  tells  me  is  most  of  it  in  money  in  the  Bank  of 
England,  lies  secure  enough,  biit  in  case  it  required 
transferring,  or  any  way  altering  its  property,  it  might 
be  necessary  to  go  up  to  London,  and  settle  these 
things  before  we  went  over,' 

I  seemed  to  look  strange  at  it,  and  told  him  I 
knew  not  what  he  meant ;  that  I  had  no  effects  in 
the  Bank  of  England  that  I  knew  of;  and  I  hope 
he  could  not  say  that  I  had  ever  told  him  I  had. 
'  No,'  he  said, '  I  had  not  told  him  so,  but  his  sister  had 
said  the  greatest  part  of  my  estate  lay  there ;  and  I 
only  mentioned  it,  my  dear,'  said  he, '  that  if  there  was 
any  occasion  to  settle  it,  or  order  anything  about  it. 


142  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

we  might  not  be  obliged  to  the  hazard  and  trouble  of 
another  voyage  back  again ; '  for,  he  added,  that  he 
did  not  care  to  venture  me  too  much  upon  the  sea. 

I  was  surprised  at  this  talk,  and  began  to  consider 
what  the  meaning  of  it  must  be  !  and  it  presently 
occurred  to  me  that  my  friend,  who  called  him 
brother,  had  represented  me  in  colours  which  were 
not  my  due  ;  and  I  thought  that  I  would  know  the 
bottom  of  it  before  I  went  out  of  England,  and  before 
I  should  put  myself  into  I  know  not  whose  hands,  in 
a  strange  country. 

Upon  this  I  called  his  sister  into  my  chamber  the 
next  morning,  and  letting  her  know  the  discourse  her 
brother  and  I  had  been  upon,  I  conjured  her  to  tell 
me  what  she  had  said  to  him,  and  upon  what  footing 
it  was  that  she  had  made  this  marriage  ?  She  owned 
that  she  had  told  him  that  I  was  a  great  fortune,  and 
said  that  she  was  told  so  at  London  :  '  Told  so,'  says  I 
warmly,  'did  I  ever  tell  you  so?'  'No,'  she  said,  'it 
was  true  I  never  did  tell  her  so,  but  I  had  said  several 
times  that  what  I  had  was  in  my  own  disposal.'  'I  did 
so,'  returned  I  very  quick,  'but  I  never  told  you- 1 
had  anything  called  a  fortune  ;  no,  that  I  had  ^loo 
or  the  value  of  ^loo  in  the  world  :  and  how  did  it 
consist  with  my  being  a  fortune,'  said  I,  '  that  I  should 
come  here  into  the  north  of  England  with  you,  only 
upon  the  account  of  living  cheap  ? '  At  these  words, 
which  I  spoke  warm  and  high,  my  husband  came  into 


Moll  Flanders  143 

the  room,  and  I  desired  him  to  come  in  and  sit  down, 
for  I  had  something  of  moment  to  say  before  them 
both,  which  it  was  absolutely  necessary  he  should  hear. 

He  looked  a  little  disturbed  at  the  assurance  with 
which  I  seemed  to  speak  it,  and  came  and  sat  down 
by  me,  having  first  shut  the  door ;  upon  which  I 
began,  for  I  was  very  much  provoked,  and  turning 
myself  to  him,  '  I  am  afraid,'  says  I,  '  my  dear '  (for  I 
spoke  with  kindness  on  his  side),  '  that  you  have  a 
very  great  abuse  put  upon  you,  and  an  injury  done 
you  never  to  be  repaired  in  your  marrying  me,  which, 
however,  as  I  have  had  no  hand  in  it,  I  desire  I  may 
be  fairly  acquitted  of  it,  and  that  the  blame  miay  He 
where  it  ought  and  nowhere  else,  for  I  wash  my  hands 
of  every  part  of  it.'  '  What  injury  can  be  done  me,  my 
dear,'  says  he,  '  in  marrying  you  ?  I  hope  it  is  to  my 
honour  and  advantage  every  way.'  'I  will  soon  explain 
it  to  you,'  says  I,  '  and  I  fear  there  will  be  no  reason 
to  think  yourself  well  used,  but  I  will  convince  you,  my 
dear,'  says  I  again,  'that  I  have  had  no  hand  in  it.' 

He  looked  now  scared  and  wild,  and  began,  I 
believed,  to  suspect  what  followed ;  however,  looking 
towards  me,  and  saying  only,  '  Go  on,'  he  sat  silent,  as 
if  to  hear  what  I  had  more  to  say ;  so  I  went  on  :  '  I 
asked  you  last  night,'  said  I,  speaking  to  him,  'if  ever 
I  made  any  boast  to  you  of  my  estate,  or  ever  told 
you  I  had  any  estate  in  the  Bank  of  England,  or 
anywhere  else,  and  you  owned  I  had  not,  as  is  most 


144  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

true ;  and  I  desire  you  will  tell  me  here,  before  your 
sister,  if  ever  I  gave  you  any  reason  from  me  to 
think  so,  or  that  ever  we  had  any  discourse  about  it ; ' 
and  he  owned  again  I  had  not ;  but  said,  I  had 
appeared  always  as  a  woman  of  fortune,  and  he  de- 
pended on  it  that  I  was  so,  and  hoped  he  was  not  de- 
ceived. '  I  am  not  inquiring  whether  you  have  been  de- 
ceived,' said  I,  '  I  fear  you  have,  and  I  too ;  but  I  am 
clearing  myself  from  being  concerned  in  deceiving  you. 

'  I  have  been  now  asking  your  sister  if  ever  I  told 
her  of  any  fortune  or  estate  I  had,  or  gave  her  any 
particulars  of  it ;  and  she  owns  I  never  did  :  "  And 
pray,  madam,"  said  I,  "be  so  just  to  me,  to  charge  me 
if  you  can,  if  ever  I  pretended  to  you  that  I  had  an 
estate ;  and  why  if  I  had,  should  I  ever  come  down 
into  this  country  with  you  on  purpose  to  spare  that 
little  I  had,  and  live  cheap  ?  " '  She  could  not  deny 
one  word,  but  said  she  had  been  told  in  London  that 
I  had  a  very  great  fortune,  and  that  it  lay  in  the 
Bank  of  England. 

'And  now,  dear  sir,'  said  I,  turning  myself  to  my 
new  spouse  again,  '  be  so  just  to  me  as  to  tell  me  who 
has  abused  both  you  and  me  so  much,  as  to  make 
you  believe  I  was  a  fortune,  and  prompt  you  to  court 
me  to  this  marriage  ? '  He  could  not  speak  a  word, 
but  pointed  to  her ;  and  after  some  more  pause,  flew 
out  in  the  most  furious  passion  that  ever  I  saw  a  man 
in  my  life ;  cursing  her,  and  calling  her  all  the 


Moll  Flanders  145 

,  and  hard  names  he  could  think  of;  and  that  she  had 
J  ruined  him,  declaring  that  she  had  told  him  I  had 
I  ;^i  5,000,  and  that  she  was  to  have  ;£5oo  of  him 
for  procuring  this  match  for  him  :  he  then  added, 
J  directing  his  speech  to  me,  that  she  was  none  of  his 

I  sister,  but  had  been  his for  two  years  before ; 

that  she  had  had  ^100  of  him  in  part  of  this  bargain, 

I  and  that  he  was  utterly  undone  if  things  were  as  I 

j  said ;  and  in  his  raving  he  swore  he  would  let  her 

I  heart's  blood  out  immediately,  which  frightened  her 

I  "nd  me  too.     She  cried,  said  she  had  been  told  so  in 

I  he  house  where  I  lodged  :  but  this  aggravated  him 

more  than  before,  that  she  should  put  so  far  upon  him, 

and  run  things  such  a  length  upon  no  other  authority 

j  than  a  hearsay  ;  and  then  turning  to  me  again,  said  very 

honestly,  he  was  afraid  we  were  both  undone ;  '  for  to 

[be  plain,  my  dear,  I  have  no  estate,'  says  he;   'what 

little  I  had,  this  devil  has  made  me  run  out  in  putting 

me  into  this  equipage.'     She  took  the  opportunity  of 

his  being  earnest  in  talking  with  me,  and  got  out  of 

the  room,  and  I  never  saw  her  more. 

I  was  confounded  now  as  much  as  he,  and  knew 
not  what  to  say  :  I  thought  many  ways  that  I  had 
ithe  worst  of  it,  but  his  saying  he  was  undone,  and 
that  he  had  no  estate  neither,  put  me  into  a  mere 
distraction.  'Why,'  says  I  to  him,  'this  has  been  a 
hellish  juggle,  for  we  are  married  here  upon  the 
foot  of   a  double    fraud ;    you   are    undone    by    the 

L 


146  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

disappointment  it  seems,  and  if  I  had  had  a  fortune  I 
had  been  cheated  too,  for  you  say  you  have  nothing.' 

'You  would  indeed  have  been  cheated,  my  dear,' 
says  he,  '  but  you  would  not  have  been  undone,  for 
;£i  5,000  would  have  maintained  us  both  very  hand- 
somely in  this  country ;  and  I  had  resolved  to  have 
dedicated  every  groat  of  it  to  you ;  I  would  not  have 
wronged  you  of  a  shilling,  and  the  rest  I  would  have 
made  up  in  my  affection  to  you,  and  tenderness  of 
you  as  long  as  I  lived.' 

This  was  very  honest  indeed,  and  I  really  believe  he  ' 
spoke  as  he  intended,  and  that  he  was  a  man  that  was 
as  wpll  qualified  to  make  me  happy,  as  to  his  temper 
and  behaviour,  as  any  man  ever  was ;  but  his  having 
no  estate,  and  being  run  into  debt  on  this  ridiculous  j 
account  in  the  country,  made  all  the  prospect  dismal  and 
dreadful,  and  I  knew  not  what  to  say,  or  what  to  think. 

I  told  him  it  was  very  unhappy,  that  so  much  love, 
and  so  much  good  nature  as  I  discovered  in  him, 
should  be  thus  precipitated  into  misery ;  that  I  saw 
nothing  before  us  but  ruin,  for  as  to  me,  it  was  my 
unhappiness,  that  what  little  I  had  was  not  able  to 
reheve  us  a  week,  and  with  that  I  pulled  out  a  bank- 
bill  of  ^20  and  eleven  guineas,  which  I  told  him  I  had  . 
saved  out  of  my  little  income ;  and  that  by  the  account  ' 
that  creature  had  given  me  of  the  way  of  living  in 
that  country,  I  expected  it  would  maintain  me  three 
or  four  years  ;  that  if  it  was  taken  from  me,  I  was  left 


Moll  Flanders  147 

destitute,  and  he  knew  what  the  condition  of  a  woman 
must  be,  if  she  had  no  money  in  her  pocket ;  how- 
ever, I  told  him,  if  he  would  take  it,  there  it  was. 

He  told  me  with  great  concern,  and  I  thought  I 
saw  tears  in  his  eyes,  that  he  would  not  touch  it,  that 
he  abhorred  the  thoughts  of  stripping  me  and  making 
me  miserable  ;  that  he  had  fifty  guineas  left,  which 
was  all  he  had  in  the  world,  and  he  pulled  it  out  and 
threw  it  down  on  the  table,  bidding  me  take  it,  though 
he  were  to  starve  for  want  of  it. 

I  returned,  with  the  same  concern  for  him,  that 

I  could  not  bear  to  hear  him  talk  so ;  that,  on  the 

contrary,  if  he  could  propose  any  probable  method 

of  living  I  would  do  anything  that  became  me,  and 

I  that  I  would  live  as  narrow  as  he  could  desire. 

He  begged  of  me  to  talk  no  more  at  that  rate,  for 
it  would  make  him  distracted ;  he  said  he  was  bred  a 
gentleman,  though  he  was  reduced  to  a  low  fortune, 
and  that  there  was  but  one  way  left  which  he  could 
think  of,  and  that  would  not  do,  unless  I  could  answer 
him  one  question,  which  however  he  said  he  would 
not  press  me  to ;  I  told  him  I  would  answer  it 
honestly ;  whether  it  would  be  to  his  satisfaction  or 
no  that  I  could  not  tell. 

'Why  then,  my  deai",  tell  me  plainly,'  says  he,  'will 
the  little  you  have  keep  us  together  in  any  figure,  or 
in  any  station  or  place,  or  will  it  not?' 

It  was  my  happiness  that  I  had  not  discovered 


148  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

myself,  or  my  circumstances,  at  all ;  no,  not  so  much 
as  my  name ;  and  seeing  there  was  nothing  to  be 
expected  from  him,  however  good-humoured,  and 
however  honest  he  seemed  to  be,  but  to  live  on  what 
I  knew  would  soon  be  wasted,  I  resolved  to  conceal 
everything  but  the  bank-bill,  and  eleven  guineas,  and 
I  would  have  been  very  glad  to  have  lost  that,  and 
have  been  set  down  where  he  took  me  up.  I  had 
indeed  another  bank-bill  about  me  of  ;^3o,  which 
was  the  whole  of  what  I  brought  with  me,  as  well  to 
subsist  on  in  the  country,  as  not  knowing  what  might 
offer ;  because  this  creature,  the  go-between  that  had 
thus  betrayed  us  both,  had  made  me  believe  strange 
things  of  marrying  to  my  advantage,  and  I  was  not 
willing  to  be  without  money,  whatever  might  happen. 
This  bill  I  concealed,  and  that  made  me  the  freer  of 
the  rest,  in  consideration  of  his  circumstances,  for  I 
really  pitied  him  heartily. 

But  to  return  to  this  question,  I  told  him  I  never 
willingly  deceived  him,  and  I  never  would.  I  was 
very  sorry  to  tell  him  that  the  little  I  had  would  not 
subsist  us  :  that  it  was  not  sufficient  to  subsist  me 
alone  in  the  south  country,  and  that  this  was  the 
reason  that  made  me  put  myself  into  the  hands  of 
that  woman  who  called  him  brother,  she  having 
assured  me  that  I  might  board  very  handsomely  at  a 
town  called  Manchester,  where  I  had  not  yet  been, 
for  about  f^d  a  year,  and  my  whole  income  not  being 


Moll  Flanders  149 

above  ^£"15  a  year,  I  thought  I  might  live  easy  upon 
it,  and  wait  for  better  things. 

He  shook  his  head,  and  remained  silent,  and  a 
very  melancholy  evening  we  had  ;  however  we  supped 
together,  and  abode  together  that  night,  and  when  we 
had  almost  supped  he  looked  a  little  better,  and  more 
cheerful,  and  called  for  a  bottle  of  wine ;  '  Come,  my 
dear,'  says  he,  'though  the  case  is  bad,  it  is  to  no 
purpose  to  be  dejected ;  Come,  be  as  easy  as  you 
can,  I  will  endeavour  to  find  out  some  way  or  other 
to  live ;  if  you  can  but  subsist  yourself,  that  is  better 
than  nothing,  I  must  try  the  world  again ;  a  man 
ought  to  think  like  a  man  ;  to  be  discouraged,  is  to 
yield  to  the  misfortune.'  With  this  he  filled  a  glass, 
and  drank  to  me,  holding  my  hand  all  the  while  the  wine 
went  down,  and  protesting  his  main  concern  was  for  me. 

It  was  really  a  true  gallant  spirit  he  was  of,  and  it 
was  the  more  grievous  to  me.  'Tis  something  of 
relief  even  to  be  undone  by  a  man  of  honour,  rather 
than  by  a  scoundrel ;  but  here  the  greatest  disappoint- 
ment was  on  his  side,  for  he  had  really  spent  a  great 
deal  of  money,  and  it  was  very  remarkable  on  what 
poor  terms  she  proceeded ;  first,  the  baseness  of  the 
creature  herself  is  to  be  observed,  who  for  the  getting 
^100  herself,  could  be  content  to  let  him  spend 
three  or  four  more,  though  perhaps  it  was  all  he  had 
in  the  world,  and  more  than  all ;  when  she  had  not 
the  least  ground  more  than  a  little  tea-table  chat,  to 


i^o 


Defoe's  Minor  Novels 


r 


say  that  I  had  any  estate,  or  was  a  fortune,  or  the 
Hke.  It  is  true  the  design  of  deluding  a  woman  of 
a  fortune,  if  I  had  been  so,  was  base  enough ;  the 
putting  the  face  of  great  things  upon  poor  circumstances 
was  a  fraud,  and  bad  enough ;  but  the  case  a  httle  J 
differed  too,  and  that  in  his  favour,  for  he  was  not  a 
rake  that  made  a  trade  to  delude  women,  and  as 
some  have  done,  get  six  or  seven  fortunes  after  one 
another,  and  then  rifle  and  run  away  from  them  ;  but 
he  was  already  a  gentleman,  unfortunate  and  low, 
but  had  lived  well ;  and  though  if  I  had  had  a  fortune, 
I  should  have  been  enraged  at  the  slut  for  betraying 
me,  yet  really  for  the  man,  a  fortune  would  not  have 
been  ill  bestowed  on  him,  for  he  was  a  lovely  person 
indeed,  of  generous  principles,  good  sense,  and  of 
abundance  of  good  humour. 

We  had  a  great  deal  of  close  conversation  that 
night,  for  we  neither  of  us  slept  much  ;  he  was  as 
penitent,  for  having  put  all  those  cheats  upon  me,  as 
if  it  had  been  felony,  and  that  he  was  going  to  execu- 
tion ;  he  offered  me  again  every  shilling  of  the  money 
he  had  about  him,  and  said  he  would  go  into  the 
army  and  seek  for  more. 

I  asked  him  why  he  would  be  so  unkind  to  carry    ^ 
me  into  Ireland,  when  I  might  suppose  he  could  not 
have  subsisted  me  there  ?     He  took  me  in  his  arms  ; 
'  My  dear,'  said  he,  '  I  never  designed  to  go  to  Ireland 
at  all,  much  less  to  have  carried  you  thither  ;  but  came 


i 


Moll  Flanders  151 

hither  to  be  out  of  the  observation  of  the  people,  who  had 
heard  what  I  pretended  to,  and  that  nobody  might  ask 
me  for  money  before  I  was  furnished  to  supply  them.' 

'But,  where  then,'  said  I,  'were  we  to  have  gone 
next  ? ' 

'Why,  my  dear,'  said  he,  Tir confess  the  whole 
scheme  to  you,  as  I  had  laid  it ;  I  purposed  here  to 
ask  you  something  about  your  estate,  as  you  see  I 
did,  and  when  you,  as  I  expected  you  would,  had 
entered  into  some  account  of  the  particulars,  I  would 
have  made  an  excuse  to  have  put  off  our  voyage  to 
Ireland  for  some  time,  and  so  have  gone  for  London. 

'Then,  my  dear,'  says  he,  '  I  resolved  to  have  con- 
fessed all  the  circumstances  of  my  own  affairs  to  you, 
and  let  you  know  I  had  indeed  made  use  of  these  arti- 
fices to  obtain  your  consent  to  marry  me,  but  had  now 
nothing  to  do  but  to  ask  your  pardon,  and  to  tell  you 
how  abundantly  I  would  endeavour  to  make  you  for- 
get what  was  past,  by  the  felicity  of  the  days  to  come.' 

'  Truly,'  said  I  to  him,  '  I  find  you  would  soon  have 
conquered  me ;  and  it  is  my  affliction  now,  that  I  am 
not  in  a  condition  to  let  you  see  how  easily  I  should 
haye  been  reconciled  to  you,  and  have  passed  by  all 
the  tricks  you  had  put  upon  me,  in  recompense  of  so 
much  good  humour  ;  '  but,  my  dear,'  said  I,  '  what  can 
we  do  now  ?  we  are  both  undone,  and  what  better 
are  we  for  our  being  reconciled,  seeing  we  have 
nothing  to  live  on  ?  ' 


152  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

We  proposed  a  great  many  things,  but  nothing 
could  offer,  where  there  was  nothing  to  begin  with.  \ 
He  begged  me  at  last  to  talk  no  more  of  it,  for,  he 
said,  I  would  break  his  heart ;  so  we  talked  of  other 
things  a  little,  till  at  last  he  took  a  husband's  leave  of 
me,  and  so  went  to  sleep. 

He  rose  before  me  in  the  morning,  and  indeed 
having  lain  awake  almost  all  night,  I  was  very  sleepy, 
and  lay  till  near  eleven  o'clock,  in  this  time  he  took 
his  horses,  and  three  servants,  and  all  his  linen  and 
baggage,  and  away  he  went,  leaving  a  short  but 
moving  letter  for  me  on  the  table,  as  follows  : 

'  My  dear, — I  am  a  dog ;  I  have  abused  you  ;  but 
I  have  been  drawn  in  to  do  it  by  a  base  creature, 
contrary  to  my  principle,  and  the  general  practice  of 
my  life.  Forgive  me,  my  dear  !  I  ask  you  pardon 
with  the  greatest  sincerity ;  I  am  the  most  miserable 
of  men,  in  having  deluded  you  :  I  have  been  so 
happy  to  possess  you,  and  am  now  so  wretched  as  to 
be  forced  to  fly  from  you.  Forgive  me,  my  dear  ; 
once  more  I  say,  forgive  me  !  I  am  not  able  to  see 
you  ruined  by  me,  and  myself  unable  to  support  you. 
Our  marriage  is  nothing ;  I  shall  never  be  able  to  see 
you  again ;  I  here  discharge  you  from  it ;  if  you  can 
marry  to  your  advantage  do  not  decline  it  on  my 
account ;  I  here  swear  to  you  on  my  faith,  and  on 
the  word  of  a  man  of  honour,  I  will  never  disturb 


Moll  Flanders  153 

your  repose  if  I  should  know  of  it,  which  however  is 
not  hkely :  on  the  other  hand,  if  you  should  not 
marry,  and  if  good  fortune  should  befall  me,  it  shall 
be  all  yours  wherever  you  are. 

'  I  have  put  some  of  the  stock  of  money  I  have 
left  into  your  pocket ;  take  places  for  yourself  and  your 
maid  in  the  stage  coach,  and  go  for  London ;  I  hope 
it  will  bear  your  charges  thither,  without  breaking 
into  your  own.  Again  I  sincerely  ask  your  pardon, 
and  will  do  so  as  often  as  I  shall  ever  think  of  you. — 
Adieu,  my  dear,  for  ever  !  I  am  yours  most  affec- 
tionately, J.  E.' 

Nothing  that  ever  befell  me  in  my  life  sunk  so 
deep  into  my  heart  as  this  farewell :  I  reproached 
him  a  thousand  times  in  my  thoughts  for  leaving  me, 
for  I  would  have  gone  with  him  through  the  world,  if 
I  had  begged  my  bread.  I  felt  in  my  pocket,  and 
there  I  found  ten  guineas,  his  gold  watch,  and  two 
little  rings,  one  a  small  diamond  ring,  worth  only 
about  ;^6,  and  the  other  a  plain  gold  ring. 

I  sat  down  and  looked  upon  these  things  two 
hours  together,  and  scarce  spoke  a  word,  till  my  maid 
interrupted  me,  by  telling  me  my  dinner  was  ready  : 
I  ate  but  little,  and  after  dinner  I  fell  into  a  violent 
fit  of  crying,  every  now  and  then  calling  him  by  his 
name,  which  was  James  ;  '  O  Jemmy  ! '  said  I,  '  come 
back,  come  back,  I'll  give  you  all  I  have ;  I'll  beg, 


154  •       Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

I'll  starve  with  you.'  And  thus  I  ran  raving  about 
the  room  several  times,  and  then  sat  down  between 
whiles,  and  then  walked  about  again,  called  upon  him 
to  come  back,  and  then  cried  again ;  and  thus  I 
passed  the  afternoon,  till  about  seven  o'clock,  when  it 
was  near  dusk  in  the  evening,  being  August,  when  to 
my  unspeakable  surprise  he  comes  back  into  the  inn, 
and  comes  directly  up  into  my  chamber. 

I  was  in  the  greatest  confusion  imaginable,  and  so 
was  he  too  :  I  could  not  imagine  what  should  be  the 
occasion  of  it ;  and  began  to  be  at  odds  with  myself 
whether  to  be  glad  or  sorry ;  but  my  affection  biassed 
all  the  rest,  and  it  was  impossible  to  conceal  my  joy, 
which  was  too  great  for  smiles,  for  it  burst  out  into 
tears.  He  was  no  sooner  entered  the  room,  but 
he  ran  to  me  and  took  me  in  his  arms,  holding  me 
fast,  and  almost  stopping  my  breath  with  his  kisses, 
but  spoke  not  a  word  ;  at  length  I  began.  '  My  dear,' 
said  I,  '  how  could  you  go  away  from  me  ? '  to  which  he 
gave  no  answer,  for  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  speak. 

When  our  ecstasies  were  a  little  over,  he  told  me 
he  was  gone  above  fifteen  miles,  but  it  was  not  in  his 
power  to  go  any  farther,  without  coming  back  to  see 
me  again,  and  to  take  his  leave  of  me  once  more. 

I  told  him  how  I  had  passed  my  time,  and  how 
loud  I  had  called  him  to  come  back  again  ;  he  told 
me  he  heard  me  very  plain  upon  Delamere  Forest,  at 
a  place  about  twelve  miles  off.     I  smiled.      '  Nay,'  says 


Moll  Flanders  155 

he,  '  do  not  think  I  am  in  jest,  for  if  ever  I  heard  your 
voice  in  my  Hfe,  I  heard  you  call  me  aloud,  and 
sometimes  I  thought  I  saw  you  running  after  me.' 
'Why,'  said  I,  'what  did  I  say?'  for  I  had  not  named 
the  words  to  him.  '  You  called  aloud,'  says  he,  *  and 
said,  "  O  Jemmy  !  O  Jemmy !  come  back,  come  back.'" 

I  laughed  at  him.  '  My  dear,'  says  he,  '  do  not 
laugh,  for  depend  upon  it,  I  heard  your  voice  as  plain 
as  you  hear  mine  now ;  if  you  please,  I'll  go  before 
a  magistrate  and  make  oath  of  it ; '  I  then  began 
to  be  amazed  and  surprised,  and  indeed  frighted,  and 
told  him  what  I  had  really  done,  and  how  I  had  called 
after  him,  as  above.  When  we  had  amused  ourselves 
awhile  about  this,  I  said  to  him,  '  Well,  you  shall  go 
away  from  me  no  more,  I'll  go  all  over  the  world  with 
you  rather.'  He  told  me,  it  would  be  a  very  difficult 
thing  for  him  to  leave  me,  but  since  it  must  be,  he 
hoped  I  would  make  it  as  easy  to  me  as  I  could ;  but 
as  for  him,  it  would  be  his  destruction,  that  he  foresaw. 

However,  he  told  me  that  he  had  considered  he 
had  left  me  to  travel  to  London  alone,  which  was  a 
long  journey ;  and  that  as  he  might  as  well  go  that 
way  as  any  way  else,  he  was  resolved  to  see  me  hither, 
or  near  it ;  and  if  he  did  go  away  then  without  taking 
his  leave,  I  should  not  take  it  ill  of  him ;  and  this  he 
made  me  promise. 

He  told  me  how  he  had  dismissed  his  three 
servants,  sold  their  horses,  and  sent  the  fellows  away 


156  Defoe's  Mino7'  Novels 

to  seek  their  fortunes,  and  all  in  a  little  time,  at  a 
town  on  the  road,  I  know  not  where;  'and,'  says  he, 
'  it  cost  me  some  tears  all  alone  by  myself,  to  think 
how  much  happier  they  were  than  their  master,  for 
they  could  go  to  the  next  gentleman's  house  to  see 
for  a  service,  whereas,'  said  he,  '  I  knew  not  whither 
to  go,  or  what  to  do  with  myself.' 

I  told  him  I  was  so  completely  miserable  in  parting 
with  him,  tjiat  I  could  not  be  worse ;  and  that  now 
he  was  come  again,  I  would  not  go  from  him,  if  he 
would  take  me  with  him,  let  him  go  whither  he  would. 
And  in  the  meantime  I  agreed  that  we  would  go 
together  to  London ;  but  I  could  not  be  brought  to 
consent  he  should  go  away  at  last,  and  not  take  his 
leave  of  me ;  but  told  him  jesting,  that  if  he  did,  I 
would  call  him  back  again  as  loud  as  I  did  before. 
Then  I  pulled  out  his  watch,  and  gave  it  him  back, 
and  his  two  rings,  and  his  ten  guineas ;  but  he  would 
not  take  them,  which  made  me  very  much  suspect 
that  he  resolved  to  go  off  upon  the  road,  and  leave  me. 

The  truth  is,  the  circumstances  he  was  in,  the 
passionate  expressions  of  his  letter,  the  kind  gentle- 
manly treatment  I  had  from  him  in  all  the  affair, 
with  the  concern  he  showed  for  me  in  it,  his  manner 
of  parting  with  that  large  share  which  he  gave  me  of 
his  little  stock  left,  all  these  had  joined  to  make  such 
impressions  on  me,  that  I  could  not  bear  the  thoughts 
of  parting  with  him. 


Moll  Flaitders  157 

Two  days  after  this  we  quitted  Chester,  I  in  the 
stage-coach,  and  he  on  horseback ;  I  dismissed  my 
maid  at  Chester ;  he  was  very  much  against  my  being 
without  a  maid,  but  she  being  hired  in  the  country 
(keeping  no  servant  at  London),  I  told  him  it  would 
have  been  barbarous  to  have  taken  the  poor  wench, 
and  have  turned  her  away  as  soon  as  I  came  to  town  ; 
and  it  would  also  have  been  a  needless  charge  on  the 
road  ;  so  I  satisfied  him,  and  he  was  easy  on  that  score 

He  came  with  me  as  far  as  Dunstable,  within 
thirty  miles  of  London,  and  then  he  told  me  fate  and 
his  own  misfortunes  obliged  him  to  leave  me,  and 
that  it  was  not  convenient  for  him  to  go  to  London, 
for  reasons  which  it  was  of  no  value  to  me  to  know, 
and  I  saw  him  preparing  to  go.  The  stage-coach  we 
were  in  did  not  usually  stop  at  Dunstable,  but  I 
desiring  it  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  they  were  content 
to  stand  at  an  inn-door  a  while,  and  we  went  into  the 
house. 

Being  in  the  inn,  I  told  him  I  had  but  one  favour 
more  to  ask  him,  and  that  was,  that  since  he  could 
not  go  any  farther,  he  would  give  me  leave  to  stay  a 
week  or  two  in  the  town  with  him,  that  we  might  in 
that  time  think  of  something  to  prevent  such  a  ruin- 
ous thing  to  us  both,  as  a  final  separation  would  be ; 
and  that  I  had  something  of  moment  to  offer  to  him, 
which  perhaps  he  might  find  practicable  to  our 
advantage. 


158  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

This  was  too  reasonable  a  proposal  to  be  denied, 
so  he  called  the  landlady  of  the  house,  and  told  her 
his  wife  was  taken  ill,  and  so  ill  that  she  could  not 
think  of  going  any  farther  in  a  stage-coach,  which  had 
tired  her  almost  to  death,  and  asked  if  she  could  not 
get  us  a  lodging  for  two  or  three  days  in  a  private 
house  where  I  might  rest  me  a  little,  for  the  journey 
had  been  too  much  for  me  ?  The  landlady,  a  good 
sort  of  a  woman,  well-bred,  and  very  obliging,  came 
immediately  to  see  me ;  told  me,  she  had  two  or 
three  very  good  rooms  in  a  part  of  the  house  quite 
out  of  the  noise,  and  if  I  saw  them  she  did  not  doubt 
but  I  would  like  them,  and  I  should  have  one  of  her 
maids,  that  should  do  nothing  else  but  wait  on  me ; 
this  was  so  very  kind,  that  I  could  not  but  accept  of 
it ;  so  I  went  to  look  on  the  rooms,  and  liked  them 
very  well,  and  indeed  they  were  extraordinarily  fur- 
nished, and  very  pleasant  lodgings  ;  so  we  paid  the 
stage-coach,  took  out  our  baggage,  and  resolved  to 
stay  here  awhile. 

Here  I  told  him  I  would  live  with  him  now  till 
all  my  money  was  spent,  but  would  not  let  him  spend 
a  shilling  of  his  own  :  we  had  some  kind  squabble 
about  that,  but  I  told  him  it  was  the  last  time  I  was 
like  to  enjoy  his  company,  and  I  desired  that  he 
would  let  me  be  master  in  that  thing  only,  and  he 
should  govern  in  everything  else ;  so  he  acquiesced. 

Here  one  evening,  taking  a  walk  into  the  fields,  I 


Moll  Flanders  159 

told  him  I  would  now  make  the  proposal  to  him  I 
had  told  him  of;  accordingly  I  related  to  him  how 
I  had  lived  in  Virginia,  that  I  had  a  mother,  I  be- 
lieved was  alive  there  still,  though  my  husband  was 
dead  some  years ;  I  told  him  that  had  not  my  effects 
miscarried,  which  by  the  way  I  magnified  pretty 
much,  I  might  have  been  fortune  good  enough  to 
him  to  have  kept  us  from  being  parted  in  this  manner. 
Then  I  entered  into  the  manner  of  people's  settling 
in  those  countries,  how  they  had  a  quantity  of  land 
given  them  by  the  constitution  of  the  place ;  and  if 
not,  that  it  might  be  purchased  at  so  easy  a  rate  that 
it  was  not  worth  naming. 

I  then  gave  him  a  full  and  distinct  account  of  the 
nature  of  planting,  how  with  carrying  over  but  two  or 
three  hundred  pounds'  value  in  English  goods,  with 
some  servants  and  tools,  a  man  of  appHcation  would 
presently  lay  a  foundation  for  a  family,  and  in  a  few 
years  would  raise  an  estate. 

I  let  him  into  the  nature  of  the  product  of  the 
earth,  how  the  ground  was  cured  and  prepared,  and 
what  the  usual  increase  of  it  was ;  and  demonstrated 
to  him,  that  in  a  very  few  years,  with  such  a  beginning, 
we  should  be  as  certain  of  being  rich  as  we  were 
now  certain  of  being  poor. 

He  was  surprised  at  my  discourse  ;  for  we  made 
it  the  whole  subject  of  our  conversation  for  near  a 
week  together,  in  which  time  I  laid  it  down  in  black 


i6o  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

and  white,  as  we  say,  that  it  was  morally  impossible, 
with  a  supposition  of  any  reasonable  good  conduct, 
but  that  we  must  thrive  there  and  do  very  well. 

Then  I  told  him  what  measures  I  would  take  to 
raise  such  a  sum  as  ;^3oo  or  thereabouts ;  and  I 
argued  with  him  how  good  a  method  it  would  be  to 
put  an  end  to  our  misfortunes,  and  restore  our  cir- 
cumstances in  the  world,  to  what  we  had  both  ex- 
pected ;  and  I  added,  that  after  seven  years  we  might 
be  in  a  posture  to  leave  our  plantation  in  good  hands, 
and  come  over  again  and  receive  the  income  of  it,  and 
live  here  and  enjoy  it ;  and  I  gave  him  examples  of 
some  that  had  done  so,  and  lived  now  in  very  good 
figure  in  London. 

In  short,  I  pressed  him  so  to  it,  that  he  almost 
agreed  to  it,  but  still  something  or  other  broke  it  off; 
till  at  last  he  turned  the  tables,  and  began  to  talk 
almost  to  the  same  purpose  of  Ireland. 

He  told  me  that  a  man  that  could  confine  himself 
to  a  country  life,  and  that  could  but  find  stock  to 
enter  upon  any  land,  should  have  farms  there  for  j[^<^o 
a  year,  as  good  as  were  let  here  for  J^2oo  2i  year; 
that  the  produce  was  such,  and  so  rich  the  land,  that 
if  much  was  not  laid  up,  we  were  sure  to  live  as 
handsomely  upon  it  as  a  gentleman  of  ^^3000  a 
year  could  do  in  England ;  and  that  he  had  laid  a 
scheme  to  leave  me  in  London,  and  go  over  and  try ; 
and  if  he  found  he  could  lay  a  handsome  foundation 


Moll  Flanders  i6i 

of  living,  suitable  to  the  respect  he  had  for  me,  as  he 
doubted  not  he  should  do,  he  would  come  over  and 
fetch  me. 

I  was  dreadfully  afraid  that  upon  such  a  proposal 
he  would  have  taken  me  at  my  word,  viz.  to  turn  my 
little  income  into  money,  and  let  him  carry  it  over 
into  Ireland  and  try  his  experiment  with  it ;  but  he 
was  too  just  to  desire  it,  or  to  have  accepted  it  if  I 
had  offered  it ;  and  he  anticipated  me  in  that,  for  he 
added,  that  he  would  go  and  try  his  fortune  that  way, 
and  if  he  found  he  could  do  anything  at  it  to  live, 
then  by  adding  mine  to  it  when  I  went  over,  we 
should  live  like  ourselves ;  but  that  he  would  not 
hazard  a  shilling  of  mine  till  he  had  made  the  experi- 
ment with  a  little,  and  he  assured  me  that  if  he  found 
nothing  to  be  done  in  Ireland  he  would  then  come 
to  me  and  join  in  my  project  for  Virginia. 

He  was  so  earnest  upon  his  project  being  to  be 
tried  first  that  I  could  not  withstand  him  •  however 
he  promised  to  let  me  hear  from  him  in  a  very  little 
time  after  his  arriving  there,  to  let  me  know  whether 
his  prospect  answered  his  design ;  that,  if  there  was 
not  a  probability  of  success,  I  might  take  the  occasion 
to  prepare  for  our  other  voyage,  and  then,  he  assured 
me,  he  would  go  with  me  to  America  with  all  his 
heart. 

I  could  bring  him  to  nothing  further  than  this, 
and  which  entertained  us  near  a  month,  during  which 

M 


1 62  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

I  enjoyed  his  company,  which  was  the  most  entertain- 
ing that  ever  I  met  with  in  my  Hfe  before.  In  this 
time  he  let  me  into  part  of  the  story  of  his  own  Hfe, 
which  was  indeed  surprising,  and  full  of  an  infinite 
variety,  sufficient  to  fill  up  a  much  brighter  history  for 
its  adventures  and  incidents,  than  any  I  ever  saw  in 
print ;  but  I  shall  have  occasion  to  say  more  of  him 
hereafter. 

We  parted  at  last,  though  with  the  utmost  reluct- 
ance on  my  side ;  and  indeed  he  took  his  leave  very 
unwillingly  too,  but  necessity  obliged  him,  for  his 
reasons  were  very  good,  why  he  would  not  come  to 
London,  as  I  understood  more  fully  afterwards. 

[This  husband  turns  out  to  be  a  noted  highwayman, 
for  ivhich  and  other  reasons  the  easy-going  heroine 
indulges  herself  with  yet  another,  whom  she  has  already 
held  in  play.  She  is  happy  enough  with  him,  but  he 
dies ;  and  her  circumstances  being  very  much  embar- 
rassed, she  has  recourse  to  an  old  harridan  who  has 
before  obliged  her  in  awkward  straits,  and  with  tvhose 
connivance  she  at  last  takes  to  shop-lifting.  We  begi'n 
after  her  husband'' s  death.) 

I  lived  two  years  in  this  dismal  condition,  wasting 
that  little  I  had,  weeping  continually  over  my  dismal 
circumstances,  and  as  it  were  only  bleeding  to  death, 
without  the  least  hope  or  prospect  of  help ;  and  now 


Moll  Flanders  163 

I  had  cried  so  long,  and  so  often,  that  tears  were 
exhausted,  and  I  began  to  be  desperate,  for  I  grew 
poor  apace. 

For  a  little  relief,  I  had  put  off  my  house  and 
took  lodgings  ;  and  as  I  was  reducing  my  living,  so  I 
sold  off  most  of  my  goods,  which  put  a  little  money 
in  my  pocket,  and  I  lived  near  a  year  upon  that, 
spending  very  sparingly,  and  eking  things  out  to  the 
utmost ;  but  still  when  I  looked  before  me,  my  heart 
would  sink  within  me  at  the  inevitable  approach  of 
misery  and  want.  O  let  none  read  this  part  without 
seriously  reflecting  on  the  circumstances  of  a  desolate 
state,  and  how  they  would  grapple  with  want  of  friends 
and  want  of  bread ;  it  will  certainly  make  them  think 
not  of  sparing  what  they  have  only,  but  of  looking  up 
to  heaven  for  support,  and  of  the  wise  man's  prayer, 
'  Give  me  not  poverty,  lest  I  steal.' 

Let  them  remember  that  a  time  of  distress  is  a 
time  of  dreadful  temptation^,  and  all  the  strength  to 
resist  is  taken  away ;  poverty  presses,  the  soul  is  made 
desperate  by  distress,  and  what  can  be  done  ?  It 
was  one  evening,  when  being  brought,  as  I  may  say, 
to  the  last  gasp,  I  think  I  may  truly  say  I  was  dis- 
tracted and  raving,  when  prompted  by  I  know  not 
what  spirit,  and  as  it  were  doing  I  did  not  know 
what,  or  why,  I  dressed  me  (for  I  had  still  pretty 
good  clothes),  and  went  out :  I  am  very  sure  I  had 
no  manner  of  design  in  my  head  when  I  went  out ; 


1 64  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

I  neither  knew,  or  considered  where  to  go,  or  on 
what  business ;  but  as  the  devil  carried  me  out,  and 
laid  his  bait  for  me,  so  he  brought  me  to  be  sure  to 
the  place,  for  I  knew  not  whither  I  was  going  or 
what  I  did. 

Wandering  thus  about,  I  knew  not  whither,  I 
passed  by  an  apothecary's  shop  in  Leadenhall-street, 
where  I  saw  he  on  a  stool  just  before  the  counter  a 
little  bundle  wrapt  in  a  white  cloth ;  beyond  it  stood 
a  maidservant  with  her  back  to  it,  looking  up  towards 
the  top  of  the  shop,  where  the  apothecary's  apprentice, 
as  I  suppose,  was  standing  upon  the  counter,  with  his 
back  also  to  the  door,  and  a  candle  in  his  hand, 
looking  and  reaching  up  to  the  upper  shelf,  for 
something  he  wanted,  so  that  both  were  engaged, 
and  nobody  else  in  the  shop. 

This  was  the  bait ;  and  the  devil  who  laid  the 
snare,  prompted  me,  as  if  he  had  spoke,  for  I  re- 
member, and  shall  never  forget  it,  'twas  hke  a  voice 
spoken  over  my  shoulder,  '  Take  the  bundle  ;  be  quick ; 
do  it  this  moment.'  It  was  no  sooner  said  but  I 
stepped  into  the  shop,  and  with  my  back  to  the 
wench,  as  if  I  had  stood  up  for  a  cart  that  was  going 
by,  I  put  my  hand  behind  me  and  took  the  bundle, 
and  went  off  with  it,  the  maid  or  fellow  not  perceiving 
me,  or  any  one  else. 

It  is  impossible  to  express  the  horror  of  my  soul 
all  the  while  I  did  it.     When  I  went  away  I  had  no 


Moll  Flanders 


i6s 


heart  to  run,  or  scarce  to  mend  my  pace :  I  crossed 
the  street  indeed,  and  went  down  the  first  turning  I 
came  to,  and  I  think  it  was  a  street  that  went  through 
into  Fenchurch-street ;  from  thence  I  crossed  and 
turned  through  so  many  ways  and  turnings,  that  I 
could  never  tell  which  way  it  was,  nor  where  I  went ; 
I  felt  not  the  ground  I  stept  on,  and  the  farther  I 
was  out  of  danger  the  faster  I  went  till,  tired  and  out 
of  breath,  I  was  forced  to  sit  down  on  a  little  bench 
at  a  door,  and  then  found  I  was  got  into  Thames- 
street,  near  Billingsgate :  I  rested  me  a  little  and 
went  on ;  my  blood  was  all  in  a  fire,  my  heart  beat 
as  if  I  was  in  a  sudden  fright :  in  short,  I  was  under 
such  a  surprise  that  I  knew  not  whither  I  was  agoing, 
or  what  to  do. 

After  I  had  tired  myself  thus  with  walking  a  long 
way  about,  and  so  eagerly,  I  began  to  consider,  and 
make  home  to  my  lodging,  where  I  came  about  nine 
o'clock  at  night. 

What  the  bundle  was  made  up  for,  or  on  what 
occasion  laid  where  I  found  it,  I  knew  not,  but  when 
I  came  to  open  it,  I  found  there  was  a  suit  of  child- 
bed-linen in  it,  very  good,  and  almost  new,  the  lace 
very  fine ;  there  was  a  silver  porringer  of  a  pint,  a 
small  silver  mug,  and  six  spoons,  with  some  other 
linen,  a  good  smock,  and  three  silk  handkerchiefs, 
and  in  the  mug  a  paper,  i8s.  6d.  in  money. 

All  the  while  I  was  opening  these  things  I  was 


1 66  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

under  such  dreadful  impressions  of  fear,  and  in  such 
terror  of  mind,  though  I  was  perfectly  safe,  that  I 
cannot  express  the  manner  of  it ;  I  sat  me  down,  and 
cried  most  vehemently ;  '  Lord,'  said  I,  '  what  am  I 
now  ?  a  thief !  why,  I  shall  be  taken  next  time,  and  be 
carried  to  Newgate,  and  be  tried  for  my  life  T  and 
with  that  I  cried  again  a  long  time,  and  I  am  sure,  as 
poor  as  I  was,  if  I  had  durst  for  fear,  I  would  certainly 
have  carried  the  things  back  again ;  but  that  went  off 
after  a  while.  Well,  I  went  to  bed  for  that  night,  but 
slept  little,  the  horror  of  the  fact  was  upon  my  mind, 
and  I  knew  not  what  I  said  or  did  all  night,  and  all 
the  next  day.  Then  I  was  impatient  to  hear  some 
news  of  the  loss ;  and  would  fain  know  how  it  was, 
whether  they  were  a  poor  body's  goods,  or  a  rich ; 
'perhaps,'  said  I,  'it  may  be  some  poor  widow  like 
me,  that  had  packed  up  these  goods  to  go  and  sell  them 
for  a  little  bread  for  herself  and  a  poor  child,  and  are 
now  starving  and  breaking  their  hearts,  for  want  of 
that  little  they  would  have  fetched  ;'  and  this  thought 
tormented  me  worse  than  all  the  rest,  for  three  or 
four  days. 

But  my  own  distresses  silenced  all  these  reflections, 
and  the  prospect  of  my  own  starving,  which  grew 
every  day  more  frightful  to  me,  hardened  my  heart 
by  degrees.  It  was  then  particularly  heavy  upon  my 
mind,  that  I  had  been  reformed,  and  had,  as  I  hoped, 
repented  of  all  my  past  wickedness ;  that  I  had  lived 


Moll  Flanders  167 

a  sober,  grave,  retired  life  for  several  years,  but  now 
I  should  be  driven  by  the  dreadful  necessity  of  my 
circumstances  to  the  gates  of  destruction,  soul  and 
body  \  and  two  or  three  times  I  fell  upon  my  knees, 
praying  to  God,  as  well  as  I  could,  for  deliverance  • 
but  I  cannot  but  say  my  prayers  had  no  hope  in 
them  :  I  knew  not  v.^hat  to  do,  it  was  all  fear  without, 
and  dark  within  ;  and  I  reflected  on  my  past  life  as 
not  repented  of,  that  heaven  was  now  beginning  to 
punish  me,  and  would  make  me  as  miserable  as  I 
had  been  wicked. 

Had  I  gone  on  here  I  had  perhaps  been  a  true 
penitent ;  but  I  had  an  evil  counsellor  within,  and  he 
was  continually  prompting  me  to  relieve  myself  by 
the  worst  means ;  so  one  evening  he  tempted  me 
again  by  the  same  wicked  impulse  that  had  said,  'Take 
that  bundle,'  to  go  out  again  and  seek  for  what  might 
happen. 

I  went  out  now  by  daylight,  and  wandered  about 
I  knew  not  whither,  and  in  search  of  I  knew  not 
what,  when  the  devil  put  a  snare  in  my  way  of  a 
dreadful  nature  indeed,  and  such  a  one  as  I  have 
never  had  before  or  since.  Going  through  Aldersgate- 
street,  there  was  a  pretty  little  child  had  been  at  a 
dancing-school,  and  was  agoing  home  all  alone ;  and 
my  prompter,  like  a  true  devil,  set  me  upon  this 
innocent  creature.  I  talked  to  it,  and  it  prattled  to 
me  again,  and  I  took  it  by  the  hand  and  led  it  along 


1 68  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

till  I  came  to  a  paved  alley  that  goes  into  Bartholo- 
mew-close, and  I  led  it  in  there ;  the  child  said,  that 
was  not  its  way  home;  I  said,  'Yes,  my  dear,'  it  is, 
I'll  show  you  the  way  home ;'  the  child  had  a  little 
necklace  on  of  gold  beads,  and  I  had  my  eye  upon 
that,  and  in  the  dark  of  the  alley  I  stooped,  pretend- 
ing to  mend  the  child's  clog  that  was  loose,  and  took 
off  her  necklace  and  the  child  never  felt  it,  and  so 
led  the  child  on  again.  Here,  I  say,  the  devil  put 
me  upon  killing  the  child  in  the  dark  alley,  that  it 
might  not  cry,  but  the  very  thought  frighted  me  so 
that  I  was  ready  to  drop  down ;  but  I  turned  the 
child  about  and  bade  it  go  back  again,  for  that  was 
not  its  way  home ;  the  child  said,  so  she  would,  and 
I  went  through  into  Bartholomew -close,  and  then 
turned  round  to  another  passage  that  goes  into  Long- 
lane,  so  away  into  Charterhouse -yard,  and  out  into 
St.  John's-street ;  then  crossing  into  Smithfield,  went 
down  Chick -lane,  and  into  Field -lane,  to  Holborn- 
bridge,  when  mixing  with  the  crowd  of  people  usually 
passing  there,  it  was  not  possible  to  have  been  found 
^ut ;  and  thus  I  made  my  second  sally  into  the  world. 
The  thoughts  of  this  booty  put  out  all  the  thoughts 
of  the  first,  and  the  reflections  I  had  made  wore  quickly 
off;  poverty  hardened  my  heart,  and  my  own  neces- 
sities made  me  regardless  of  anything.  The  last 
affair  left  no  great  concern  upon  me,  for  as  I  did  the 
poor  child  no  harm,  I  only  thought  I  had  given  the 


^ 


V 

Moll  Flanders  169 


arents  a  just  reproof  for  their  negligence,  in  leaving 
the  poor  lamb  to  come  home  by  itself,  and  it  would 
teach  them  to  take  more  care  another  time. 

This  string  of  beads  was  worth  about  ;£i2  or  ;^i4. 
I  suppose  it  might  have  been  formerly  the  mother's, 
for  it  was  too  big  for  the  child's  wear,  but  that,  per- 
haps, the  vanity  of  the  mother  to  have  her  child  look 
fine  at  the  dancing-school,  had  made  her  let  the  child 
wear  it,  and  no  doubt  the  child  had  a  maid  sent  to 
take  care  of  it,  but  she,  like  a  careless  jade,  was  taken 
up  perhaps  with  some  fellow  that  had  met  her,  and 
so  the  poor  baby  wandered  till  it  fell  into  my  hands. 

However,  I  did  the  child  no  harm ;  I  did  not  so 
much  as  fright  it,  for  I  had  a  great  many  tender 
thoughts  about  me  yet,  and  did  nothing  but  what,  as 
I  may  say,  mere  necessity  drove  me  to. 

I  had  a  great  many  adventures  after  this,  but  I 
was  young  in  the  business,  and  did  not  know  how  to 
manage,  otherwise  than  as  the  devil  put  things  into 
my  head  ;  and  indeed  he  was  seldom  backward  to  me. 
One  adventure  I  had  which  was  very  lucky  to  me ;  I 
was  going  through  Lombard-street,  in  the  dusk  of  the 
evening,  just  by  the  end  of  Three  King-court,  when 
on  a  sudden  comes  a  fellow  running  by  me  as  swift 
as  lightning,  and  throws  a  bundle  that  was  in  his 
hand  just  behind  me,  as  I  stood  up  against  the  corner 
of  the  house  at  the  turning  into  the  alley ;  just  as  he 
threw  it  in,  he  said,  '  God  bless  you,  mistress,  let  it  lie 


170  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

there  a  little,'  and  away  he  runs  :  after  him  comes  two 
more,  and  immediately  a  young  fellow  without  his 
hat,  crying,  'Stop  thief;'  they  pursued  the  two  last 
fellows  so  close  that  they  were  forced  to  drop  what 
they  had  got,  and  one  of  them  was  taken  into  the 
bargain  ;  the  other  got  off  free. 

I  stood  stockstill  all  this  while,  till  they  came  back 
dragging  the  poor  fellow  they  had  taken,  and  lugging 
the  things  they  had  found,  extremely  well  satisfied 
that  they  had  recovered  the  booty,  and  taken  the 
thief;  and  thus  they  passed  by  me,  for  I  looked  only 
like  one  who  stood  u^)  while  the  crowd  was  gone. 

Once  or  twice  I  asked  what  was  the  matter,  but 
the  people  neglected  answering  me,  and  I  was  not 
very  importunate ;  but  after  the  crowd  was  wholly 
passed,  I  took  my  opportunity  to  turn  about  and  take 
up  what  was  behind  me  and  walk  away  :  this  indeed 
I  did  with  less  disturbance  than  I  had  done  formerly, 
for  these  things  I  did  not  steal,  but  they  were  stolen 
to  my  hand.  I  got  safe  to  my  lodgings  w^ith  this 
cargo,  which  was  a  piece  of  fine  black  lustering  silk, 
and  a  piece  of  velvet ;  the  latter  was  but  part  of  a 
piece  of  about  eleven  yards ;  the  former  was  a  whole 
piece  of  near  fifty  yards ;  it  seems  it  was  a  mercer's 
shop  that  they  had  rifled ;  I  say  rifled,  because  the 
goods  were  so  considerable  that  they  had  lost ;  for 
the  goods  that  they  recovered  were  pretty  rnany,  and 
I  believe  came  to  about  six  or  seven  several  pieces  of 


Moll  Flanders  171 

silk  :  how  they  came  to  get  so  many  I  could  not  tell ; 
but  as  I  had  only  robbed  the  thief,  I  made  no  scruple 
at  taking  these  goods,  and  being  very  glad  of  them 
too. 

I  had  pretty  good  luck  thus  far,  and  I  made 
several  adventures  more,  though  with  but  small  pur- 
chase, yet  with  good  success,  but  I  went  in  daily 
dread  that  some  mischief  would  befall  me,  and  that  I 
should  certainly  come  to  be  hanged  at  last.  The 
impression  this  made  on  me  was  too  strong  to  be 
slighted,  and  it  kept  me  from  making  attempts,  that 
for  aught  I  knew,  might  have  been  very  safely  per- 
formed ;  but  one  thing  I  cannot  omit,  which  was  a 
bait  to  me  many  a  day.  I  walked  frequently  out 
into  the  villages  round  the  town  to  see  if  nothing 
would  fall  in  my  way  there ;  and  going  by  a  house 
near  Stepney,  I  saw  on  the  window-board  two  rings, 
one  a  small  diamond  ring,  and  the  other  a  plain  gold 
ring,  to  be  sure  laid  there  by  some  thoughtless  lady,  ^ 
that  had  more  money  than  forecast,  perhaps  only  till 
she  washed  her  hands. 

I  walked  several  times  by  the  window  to  observe 
if  I  could  see  whether  there  was  anybody  in  the  room 
or  no,  and  I  could  see  nobody,  but  still  I  v/as  not 
sure ;  it  came  presently  into  my  thoughts  to  rap  at 
the  glass,  as  if  I  wanted  to  speak  with  somebody,  and 
if  anybody  was  there  they  would  be  sure  to  come  to 
the  window,  and  then  I  would  tell  them  to  remove^ 


172  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

those  rings,  for  that  I  had  seen  two  suspicious  fellows 
take  notice  of  them.  This  was  a  ready  thought ;  I 
rapped  once  or  twice,  and  nobody  came,  when  I  thrust 
hard  against  the  square  of  glass,  and  broke  it  with 
little  noise,  and  took  out  the  two  rings,  and  walked 
away;  the  diamond  ring  was  worth  about  ;^3,  and 
the  other  about  9s. 

I  was  now  at  a  loss  for  a  market  for  my  goods, 
and  especially  for  my  two  pieces  of  silk.  I  was  very 
loath  to  dispose  of  them  for  a  trifle,  as  the  poor  un- 
happy thieves  in  general  do,  who  after  they  have 
ventured  their  lives  for  perhaps  a  thing  of  value,  are 
forced  to  sell  it  for  a  song  when  they  have  done ;  but 
I  was  resolved  I  would  not  do  thus,  whatever  shift  I 
made ;  however,  I  did  not  well  know  what  course  to 
take.  At  last  I  resolved  to  go  to  my  old  governess, 
and  acquaint  myself  with  her  again  ;  I  had  punctually 
supplied  the  £,^  a  year  to  her  for  my  little  boy  as  long 
as  I  was  able  ;  but  at  last  was  obliged  to  put  a  stop  to 
it.  However,  I  had  written  a  letter  to  her,  wherein  I 
had  told  her  that  my  circumstances  were  reduced  ;  that 
I  had  lost  my  husband,  and  that  I  was  not  able  to  do 
it  any  longer,  and  begged  the  poor  child  might  not 
suffer  too  much  for  its  mother's  misfortunes. 

I  now  made  her  a  visit,  and  I  found  that  she 
drove  something  of  the  old  trade  still,  but  that  she 
was  not  in  such  flourishing  circumstances  as  before ; 
for  she  had  been  sued  by  a  certain  gentleman,  who 


Moll  Flanders  173 

had  had  his  daughter  stolen  from  him,  and  who  it 
seems  she  had  helped  to  convey  away ;  and  it  was 
very  narrowly  that  she  escaped  the  gallows.  The 
expense  also  had  ravaged  her,  so  that  her  house  was 
but  meanly  furnished,  and  she  was  not  in  such  repute 
for  her  practice  as  before ;  however,  she  stood  upon 
her  legs,  as  they  say,  and  as  she  was  a  bustling 
woman,  and  had  some  stock  left,  she  was  turned 
pawnbroker,  and  lived  pretty  well. 

She  received  me  very  civilly,  and  with  her  usual 
obliging  manner  told  me  she  would  not  have  the  less 
respect  for  me  for  my  being  reduced ;  that  she  had 
taken  care  my  boy  was  very  well  looked  after,  though 
I  could  not  pay  for  him,  and  that  the  woman  that  had 
him  was  easy,  so  that  I  needed  not  to,  trouble  myself 
about  him,  till  I  might  be  better  able  to  do  it 
effectually. 

I  told  her  I  had  not  much  money  left,  but  that  I 
had  some  things  that  were  money's  worth,  if  she  could 
tell  me  how  I  might  turn  them  into  money.  She 
asked  what  it  was  I  had  ?  I  pulled  out  the  string  of 
gold  beads,  and  told  her  it  was  one  of  my  husband's 
presents  to  me ;  then  I  showed  her  the  two  parcels 
of  silk  which  I  told  her  I  had  from  Ireland,  and 
brought  up  to  town  with  me  :  and  the  little  diamond 
ring.  As  to  the  small  parcel  of  plate  and  spoons,  I 
had  found  means  to  dispose  of  them  myself  before ; 
and  as  for  the  childbed-linen  I  had,  she  offered  me 


174  Defoe  s  Minoi'  Novels 

to  take  it  herself,  believing  it  to  have  been  my  own. 
She  told  me  that  she  was  turned  paw^nbroker,  and 
that  she  w^ould  sell  those  things  for  me  as  pawned  to 
her,  and  so  she  sent  presently  for  proper  agents  that 
bought  them,  being  in  her  hands,  without  any  scruple, 
and  gave  good  prices  too. 

I  now  began  to  think  this  necessary  woman  might 
help  me  a  little  in  my  low  condition  to  some  business; 
for  I  would  gladly  have  turned  my  hand  to  any  honest 
employment  if  I  could  have  got  it ;  but  honest  busi- 
ness did  not  come  wathin  her  reach.  If  I  had  been 
younger,  perhaps  she  might  have  helped  me,  but  my 
thoughts  were  off  of  that  kind  of  livehhood,  as  being 
quite  out  of  the  way  after  fifty,  which  w^as  my  case, 
and  so  I  told  her. 

She  invited  me  at  last  to  come  and  be  at  her 
house  till  I  could  find  something  to  do,  and  it  should 
cost  me  very  little,  and  this  I  gladly  accepted  of;  and 
now  living  a  little  easier,  I  entered  into  some  measures 
to  have  my  little  son  by  my  last  husband  taken  off; 
and  this  she  made  easy  too,  reserving  a  payment  only 
of  £iS  "^  year,  if  I  could  pay  it.  This  was  such  a 
help  to  me,  that  for  a  good  while  I  left  off  the  wicked 
trade  that  I  had  so  newly  taken  up ;  and  gladly  I 
would  have  got  work,  but  that  was  very  hard  to  do 
for  one  that  had  no  acquaintance. 

However,  at  last  I  got  some  quilting  work  for 
ladies'  beds,  petticoats,  and  the  like ;  and  this  I  fiked 


Moll  Flanders  175 

very  well,  and  worked  very  hard,  and  with  this  I 
began  to  live ;  but  the  diligent  devil  who  resolved  I 
should  continue  in  his  service,  continually  prompted 
me  to  go  out  and  take  a  walk,  that  is  to  say,  to  see 
if  anything  would  offer  in  the  old  way. 

One  evening  I  blindly  obeyed  his  summons,  and 
fetched  a  long  circuit  through  the  streets,  but  met 
with  no  purchase ;  but  not  content  with  that,  I  went 
out  the  next  evening  too,  when  going  by  an  alehouse 
I  saw  the  door  of  a  little  room  open,  next  the  very 
street,  and  on  the  table  a  silver  tankard,  things  much 
in  use  in  public-houses  at  that  time ;  it  seems  some 
company  had  been  drinking  there,  and  the  careless 
boys  had  forgot  to  take  it  away. 

I  went  into  the  box  frankly,  and  setting  the  silver 
tankard  on  the  corner  of  the  bench,  I  sat  down  before 
it,  and  knocked  with  my  foot ;  a  boy  came  presently, 
and  I  bade  him  fetch  me  a  pint  of  warm  ale,  for  it 
was  cold  weather ;  the  boy  ran,  and  I  heard  him  go 
down  the  cellar  to  draw  the  ale ;  while  the  boy  was 
gone,  another  boy  came,  and  cried,  '  D'ye  call  ?  '  I 
spoke  with  a  melancholy  air,  and  said,  '  No,  the  boy 
is  gone  for  a  pint  of  ale  for  me.' 

While  I  sat  here,  I  heard  the  woman  in  the  bar 
say,  '  Are  they  all  gone  in  the  five  ? '  which  was  the 
box  I  sat  in,  and  the  boy  said,  'Yes.'  'Who  fetched 
the  tankard  away?'  says  the  woman.  'I  did,'  says 
another  boy,  'that's  it,'  pointing  it  seems  to  another 


176  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

tankard,  which  he  had  fetched  from  another  box  by 
mistake ;  or  else  it  must  be  that  the  rogue  forgot 
that  he  had  not  brought  it  in,  which  certainly  he 
had  not. 

I  heard  all  this  much  to  my  satisfaction,  for  I 
found  plainly  that  the  tankard  was  not  missed,  and 
yet  they  concluded  it  was  fetched  away  :  so  I  drank 
my  ale,  called  to  pay,  and  as  I  went  away,  I  said, 
'Take  care  of  your  plate,  child,'  meaning  a  silver  pint 
mug  which  he  brought  me  to  drink  in  :  the  boy  said, 
'  Yes,  madam,  very  welcome,'  and  away  I  came. 

I  came  home  to  my  governess,  and  now  I  thought 
it  was  a  time  to  try  her,  that  if  I  might  be  put  to  the 
necessity  of  being  exposed  she  might  offer  me  some 
assistance.  When  I  had  been  at  home  some  time, 
and  had  an  opportunity  of  talking  to  her,  I  told  her 
I  had  a  secret  of  the  greatest  consequence  in  the 
world  to  commit  to  her,  if  she  had  respect  enough 
for  me  to  keep  it  a  secret :  she  told  me  she  had  kept 
one  of  my  secrets  faithfully  ;  why  should  I  doubt  her 
keeping  another  ?  I  told  her  the  strangest  thing  in 
the  world  had  befallen  me,  even  without  any  design  ; 
and  so  told  her  the  whole  story  of  the  tankard.  '  And 
have  you  brought  it  away  with  you,  my  dear  ? '  says 
she.  'To  be  sure  I  have,'  says  I,  and  showed  it  her. 
'  But  what  shall  I  do  now?'  says  I,  'must  not  I  carry 
it  again  ? ' 

'  Carry  it  again  ! '  says  she ;   '  ay,  if  you  want  to  go 


Moll  Flanda's  177 

to  Newgate.'  '  Why,'  says  I,  '  they  can't  be  so  base  to 
stop  me,  when  I  carry  it  to  them  again  ?'  '  You  don't 
know  those  sort  of  people,  child,'  says  she ;  '  they'll 
not  only  carry  you  to  Newgate,  but  hang  you  too, 
without  any  regard  to  the  honesty  of  returning  it ;  or 
bring  in  an  account  of  all  the  other  tankards  as  they 
have  lost,  for  you  to  pay  for.'  '  What  must  I  do  then  ?' 
says  I.  '  Nay,'  says  she,  '  as  you  have  played  the  cun- 
ning part  and  stole  it,  you  must  e'en  keep  it,  there's 
no  going  back  now ;  besides,  child,'  says  she,  '  don't 
you  want  it  more  than  they  do  ?  I  wish  you  could 
light  of  such  a  bargain  once  a  week.' 

This  gave  me  a  new  notion  of  my  governess,  and 
that,  since  she  was  turned  pawnbroker,  she  had  a  sort 
of  people  about  her  that  were  none  of  the  honest 
ones  that  I  had  met  with  there  before. 

I  had  not  been  long  there  but  I  discovered  it 
^  more  plainly  than  before,  for  every  now  and  then  I 
saw  hilts  of  swords,  spoons,  forks,  tankards,  and  all 
such  kind  of  ware  brought  in,  not  to  be  pawned,  but 
to  be  sold  downright ;  and  she  bought  them  all 
without  asking  any  questions,  but  had  good  bargains, 
as  I  found  by  her  discourse. 

I  found  also  that  in  following  this  trade  she  always 
melted  down  the  plate  she  bought,  that  it  might  not 
be  challenged ;  and  she  came  to  me  and  told  me  one 
morning  that  she  was  going  to  melt,  and  if  I  would, 
she  would  put  my  tankard  in,  that  it  might  not  be 

N 


178  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

seen  by  anybody ;  I  told  her  with  all  my  heart ;  so 
she  weighed  it,  and  allowed  me  the  full  value  in 
silver  again  ;  but  I  found  she  did  not  do  so  to  the 
rest  of  her  customers. 
Hr'  Some  time  after  this,  as  I  was  at  work,  and  very 
melancholy,  she  begins  to  ask  me  what  the  matter 
was  ?  I  told  her  my  heart  was  very  heavy,  I  had 
little  work  and  nothing  to  live  on,  and  knew  not 
what  course  to  take.  She  laughed,  and  told  me  I 
must  go  out  again  and  try  my  fortune  ;  it  might  be 
that  I  might  meet  with  another  piece  of  plate.  '  O, 
mother ! '  says  I,  '  that  is  a  trade  that  I  have  no  skill 
in,  and  if  I  should  be  taken  I  am  undone  at  once.' 
Says  she,  '  I  could  help  you  to  a  schoolmistress,  that 
shall  make  you  as  dexterous  as  herself;'  I  trembled 
at  that  proposal,  for  hitherto  I  had  had  no  confeder- 
ates nor  any  acquaintance  among  that  tribe.  But  she 
conquered  all  my  modesty,  and  all  my  fears ;  and  in 
a  little  time,  by  the  help  of  this  confederate,  I  grew 
as  impudent  a  thief,  and  as  dexterous,  as  ever  Moll 
Cutpurse  was,  though,  if  fame  does  not  belie  her,  not 
half  so  handsome. 

The  comrade  she  helped  me  to,  dealt  in  three 
sorts  of  craft ;  viz.  shoplifting,  stealing  of  shop-books 
and  pocket-books,  and  taking  off  gold  watches  from 
the  ladies'  sides ;  and  this  last  she  did  so  dexterously 
that  no  woman  ever  arrived  to  the  perfection  of  that 
art,  like  her.     I  liked  the  first  and  the  last  of  these 


Moll  Flande7's  179 

things  very  well,  and  I  attended  her  some  time  in  the 
practice,  just  as  a  deputy  attends  a  midwife,  without 
any  pay. 

At  length  she  put  me  to  practice.      She  had  shown 
me   her  art,  and   I   had   several   times   unhooked   a 
watch  from  her  own  side  with  great  dexterity ;  at  last 
she  showed  me  a  prize,  and  this  was  a  young  lady 
with  child,  who  had  a  charming  watch.      The  thing 
was  to  be  done  as  she  came  out  of  the  church ;  she 
goes  on  one  side  of  the  lady,  and  pretends,  just  as 
she  came  to  the  steps,  to  fall,  and  fell  against  the 
lady  with  so  much  violence  as  put  her  into  a  great 
fright,    and    both    cried    out    terribly :     in    the    very 
moment  that  she  jostled  the  lady,  I  had  hold  of  the 
watch,  and  holding  it  the  right  way,  the  start  she  gave 
drew  the  hook  out  and  she  never  felt  it ;  I  made  off 
immediately,  and  left  my  schoolmistress  to  come  out 
of  her  fright  gradually,  and  the  lady  too  ;  and  presently  ^ 
the  watch  was  missed;  'Ay,'  says  my  comrade,  'then 
it  was  those  rogues  that  thrust  me  down,  I  warrant  ye  ; 
I  wonder  the  gentlewoman  did  not  miss  her  watch 
before,  then  we  might  have  taken  them.' 

She  humoured  the  thing  so  well  that  nobody 
suspected  her,  and  I  was  got  home  a  full  hour  before 
her.  This  was  my  first  adventure  in  company  ;  the 
watch  was  indeed  a  very  fine  one,  and  had  many 
trinkets  about  it,  and  my  governess  allowed  us  ;£^2  0 
for  it,  of  which  I  had  half.     And  thus  I  was  entered 


i8o  Defoe's  Mmor  Novels 

a  complete  thief,  hardened  to  a  pitch  above  all  the 
reflections  of  conscience  or  modesty,  and  to  a  degree 
which  I  never  thought  possible  in  me. 

Thus  the  devil,  who  began,  by  the  help  of  an  irre- 
sistible poverty,  to  push  me  into  this  wickedness, 
brought  me  to  a  height  beyond  the  common  rate, 
even  when  my  necessities  were  not  so  terrifying ;  for 
I  had  now  got  into  a  little  vein  of  work,  and  as  I  was 
not  at  a  loss  to  handle  my  needle,  it  was  very  probable 
I  might  have  got  my  bread  honestly  enough. 

I  must  say,  that  if  such  a  prospect  of  work  had 
presented  itself  at  first,  when  I  began  to  feel  the 
approach  of  my  miserable  circumstances  ;  I  say,  had 
such  a  prospect  of  getting  bread  by  working  presented 
itself  then,  I  had  never  fallen  into  this  wicked  trade, 
or  into  such  a  wicked  gang  as  I  was  now  embarked 
with ;  but  practice  had  hardened  me,  and  I  grew 
audacious  to  the  last  degree  ;  and  the  more  so,  because, 
I  had  carried  it  on  so  long,  and  had  never  been  taken ; 
for  in  a  word,  my  new  partner  in  wickedness  and  I 
went  on  together  so  long,  without  being  ever  detected, 
that  we  not  only  grew  bold,  but  we  grew  rich,  and 
we  had  at  one  time  one-and-twenty  gold  watches  in 
our  hands. 

I  remember  that  one  day  being  a  little  more 
serious  than  ordinary,  and  finding  I  had  so  good  a 
stock  beforehand,  as  I  had,- for  I  had  near  ;2{^2oo  in 
money  for  my  share ;  it  came  strongly  into  my  mind, 


Moll  Flanders  i8i 

.  ftd  doubt  from  some  kind  spirit,  if  such  there  be, 
that  as  at  first  poverty  excited  me,  and  my  distresses 
drove  me  to  these  dreadful  shifts,  so  seeing  those 
distresses  were  now  reheved,  and  I  could  also  get 
something  towards  a  maintenance  by  working,  and 
had  so  good  a  bank  to  support  me,  why  should  I  not 
now  leave  off,  while  I  was  well ;  that  I  could  not 
expect  to  go  always  free  ;  and  if  I  was  once  surprised, 
I  was  undone. 

This  was  doubtless  the  happy  minute,  when,  if  I 
had  hearkened  to  the  blessed  hint,  from  whatsoever 
hand  it  came,  I  had  still  a  cast  for  an  easy  life.  But 
my  fate  was  otherwise  determined ;  the  busy  devil 
that  drew  me  in,  had  too  fast  hold  of  me  to  let  me 

_^.ga_bacfe^  but  as  poverty  brought  me  in,  so  avarice 
kept  me  in,  till  there  was  no  going  back ;  "as  to  the 

f  arguments  which  my  reason  dictated  for  persuading 
me  to  lay  down,  avarice  stept  in  and  said,  '  Go  on, 
you  have  had  very  good  luck,  go  on  till  you  have 
gotten  four  or  five  hundred  pounds,  and  then  you 
shall  leave  off,  and  then  you  may  live  easy  without 
working  at  all.' 

Thus  I  that  was  once  in  the  devil's  clutches,  was 
held  fast  there  as  with  a  charm,  and  had  no  power  to 
go  without  the  circle,  till  I  was  ingulfed  in  labyrinths 
of  trouble  too  great  to  get  out  at  all. 

However,  these  thoughts  left  some  impression 
upon  me,  and  made  me  act  with  some  more  caution 


>»Wi)MVU«H, 


1 82  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

than  before,  and  more  than  my  directors  used  for 
themselves.  My  comrade,  as  I  called  her  (she  should 
have  been  called  my  teacher),  with  another  of  her 
scholars,  was  the  first  in  the  misfortune ;  for  happen- 
ing to  be  upon  the  hunt  for  purchase,  they  made  an 
attempt  upon  a  linen-draper  in  Cheapside,  but  were 
snapped  by  a  hawk-eyed  journeyman,  and  seized  with 
two  pieces  of  cambric,  which  were  taken  also  upon 
them. 

This  was  enough  to  lodge  them  both  in  Newgate, 
where  they  had  the  misfortune  to  have  some  of  their 
former  sins  brought  to  remembrance ;  two  other  in- 
dictments being  brought  against  them,  and  the  facts 
being  proved  upon  them,  they  were  both  condemned 
to   die ;  '■'  *  ^sf  *  « 

^  -;f  *  *  *  * 

I  went  frequently  to  see  them,  and  condole  with 
them,  expecting  that  it  would  be  my  turn  next ;  but 
the  place  gave  me  so  much  horror,  reflecting  that  it 
was  the  place  of  my  unhappy  birth,  and  of  my 
mother's  misfortunes,  that  I  could  not  bear  it,  so  I 
left  off  going  to  see  them. 

And  O  !  could  I  but  have  taken  warning  by  their 
disasters,  I  had  been  happy  still,  for  I  was  yet  free, 
and  had  nothing  brought  against  me ;  but  it  could 
not  be,  my  measure  was  not  yet  filled  up. 

My  comrade,  having  the  brand  of  an  old  offender, 
was  executed ;  the  young  offender  was  spared,  having 


Moll  Flanders  183 

obtained  a  reprieve ;  but  lay  starving  a  long  while  in 
prison,  till  at  last  she  got  her  name  into  what  they 
call  a  circuit  pardon,  and  so  came  off. 

This  terrible  example  of  my  comrade  frighted  me 
heartily,  and  for  a  good  while  I  made  no  excursions ; 
but  one  night,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  my  governess's 
house,  they  cried,  '  Fire ; '  my  governess  looked  out, 
for  we  were  all  up,  and  cried  immediately  that  such  a 
gentlewoman's  house  was  all  of  a  light  fire  a-top,  and 
so  indeed  it  was.  Here  she  gives  me  a  jog  ;  '  Now, 
child,'  says  she,  '  there  is  a  rare  opportunity,  the  fire 
being  so  near  that  you  may  go  to  it  before  the  street 
is  blocked  up  with  the  crowd.'  She  presently  gave 
me  my  cue;  'Go,  child,' says  she,  'to  the  house,  and 
run  in  and  tell  the  lady,  or  anybody  you  see,  that  you 
come  to  help  them,  and  that  you  came  from  such  a 
gentlewoman  ;  that  is,  one  of  her  acquaintance  farther 
up  the  street.' 

Aw^ay  I  went,  and,  coming  to  the  house,  I  found 
them  all  in  confusion,  you  may  be  sure ;  I  ran  in, 
and  finding  one  of  the  maids,  '  Alas  !  sweetheart,'  said 
I,  '  how  came  this  dismal  accident  ?  where  is  your 
mistress  ?  is  she  safe  ?  and  where  are  the  children  ? 

I  come  from  Madam to  help  you.'     Away  runs 

the  maid ;  '  Madam,  madam,'  says  she,  screaming  as 
loud  as  she  could  yell,  '  here  is  a  gentlewoman  come 

from  Madam  to  help  us.'     The  poor  woman, 

half  out  of  her  wits,  with  a  bundle  under  her  arm, 


1 84  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  two  little  children,  comes  towards  me  ;  '  ]\Iadam,' 

says  I, '  let  me  carry  the  poor  children  to  Madam , 

she  desires  you  to  send  them ;  she'll  take  care  of  the 
poor  lambs ; '  and  so  I  takes  one  of  them  out  of  her 
hand,  and  she  lifts  the  t'other  up  into  my  arms  :  '  Ay 
do,  for  God's  sake,'  says  she,  'carry  them;  O  thank  her 
for  her  kindness.  '  Have  you  anything  else  to  secure, 
madam  ?'  says  I ;  '  she  will  take  care  of  it.'  '  O  dear  ! ' 
says  she,  '  God  bless  her,  take  this  bundle  of  plate  and 
carry  it  to  her  too  \  O  she  is  a  good  woman ;  O,  we 
are  utterly  ruined,  undone  !'  And  away  she  runs 
from  me  out£of  her  wits,  and  the  maids  after  her, 
and  away  comes  I  with  the  two  children  and  the 
bundle. 

I  w^as  no  sooner  got  into  the  street,  but  I  saw 
another  woman  come  to  me  ;  '  O  !'  says  she,'  mistress,' 
in  a  piteous  tone,  '  you  will  let  fall  the  child ;  come, 
come,  this  is  a  sad  time,  let  me  help  you;'  and  im- 
mediately lays  hold  of  my  bundle  to  carry  it  for  me. 
'  No,'  says  I, '  if  you  will  help  me,  take  the  child  by  the 
hand,  and  lead  it  for  me  but  to  the  upper  end  of  the 
street ;  I'll  go  with  you  and  satisfy  you  for  your 
pains.' 

She  could  not  avoid  going,  after  what  I  said,  but 
the  creature,  in  short,  was  one  of  the  same  business 
with  me,  and  wanted  nothing  but  the  bundle ;  how- 
ever, she  went  with  me  to  the  door,  for  she  could 
not  help  it;  when  we  were  come  there  I  whispered 


Moll  Flanders    ^       Y  185'^ 

her,  '  Go,  child,'  said  I,  '  I  understand  your  trade,  you 
may  meet  with  purchase  enough.' 

She  understood  me  and  walked  off;  I  thundered 
at  the  door  with  the  children,  and  as  the  people  were 
raised  before  by  the  noise  of  the  fire,  I  was  soon  let 
in,  and  I  said,  '  Is  madam  awake  ?  pray  tell  her  Mrs. 

desires    the    favour   of  her   to   take   the    two 

children  in ;  poor  lady,  she  will  be  undone,  their 
house  is  all  of  a  flame.'  They  took  the  children  in 
very  civilly,  pitied  the  family  in  distress,  and  away 
came  I  with  my  bundle.  One  of  the  maids  asked 
me  if  I  was  not  to  leave  the  bundle  too ;  I  said,  '  No, 
sweetheart,  'tis  to  go  to  another  place,  it  does  not  p 
belong  to  them.' 

I  was  a  great  way  out  of  the  hurry  now,  and  so  I 
went  on  and  brought  the  bundle  of  plate,  which  was 
very  considerable,  straight  home,  to  my  old  governess ; 
she  told  me  she  would  not  look  into  it,  but  bade  me 
go  again  and  look  for  more. 

She  gave  me  the  like  cue  to  the  gentlewoman  of 
the  next  house  to  that  which  was  on  fire,  and  I  did 
my  endeavour  to  go,  but  by  this  time  the  alarm  of 
fire  was  so  great,  and  so  many  engines  playing,  and 
the  street  so  thronged  with  people,  that  I  could  not 
get  near  the  house,  whatever  I  could  do  j  so  I  came 
back  again  to  my  governess's,  and  taking  the  bundle 
up  into  my  chamber  I  began  to  examine  it.  It  is 
with  horror  that  I  tell  what  a  treasure  I  found  there ; 


1 86  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

'tis  enough  to  say,  that  besides  most  of  the  family 
plate,  which  was  considerable,  I  found  a  gold  chain, 
an  old-fashioned  thing,  the  locket  of  which  was  broken, 
so -that  I  suppose  it  had  not  been  used  some  years, 
but  the  O'old  was  not  the  worse  for  that :  also  a  little 
box  of  burying  rings,  the  lady's  wedding-ring,  and 
some  broken  bits  of  old  lockets  of  gold,  a  gold  watch, 
and  a  purse  with  about  ;£2  4  value  in  old  pieces  of 
gold  coin,  and  several  other  things  of  value. 

This  was  the  greatest  and  the  worst  prize  that  ever 
I  was  concerned  in ;  for  indeed,  though,  as  I  have 
said  above,  I  was  hardened  now  beyond  the  power  of 
all  reflection  in  other  cases,  yet  it  really  touched  me 
to  the  very  soul,  when  I  looked  into  this  treasure ;  to 
think  of  the  poor  disconsolate  gentlewoman  who  had 
lost  so  much  besides ;  and  who  would  think  to  be 
sure  that  she  had  saved  her  plate  and  best  things ; 
how  she  would  be  surprised  when  she  should  find 
that  she  had  been  deceived,  and  that  the  person  that 
took  her  children  and  her  goods,  had  come,  as  was 
pretended,  from  the  gentlewoman  in  next  street,  but 
that  the  children  had  been  put  upon  her  without  her 
own  knowledge. 

I  say,  I  confess  the  inhumanity  of  this  action 
moved  me  very  much,  and  made  me  relent  exceed- 
ingly, and  tears  stood  in  my  eyes  upon  that  sub- 
ject ;  but  with  all  my  sense  of  its  being  cruel  and  in- 
human, I  could  never  find  in  my  heart  to  make  any 


Moll  Flanders  187 

restitution.     The  reflection  wore  off,  and  I  quickly 
forgot  the  circumstances  that  attended  it. 

Nor  was  this  all ;  for  though  by  this  job  I  was 
become  considerably  richer  than  before,  yet  the 
resolution  I  had  formerly  taken  of  leaving  off  this 
horrid  trade  when  I  had  gotten  a  little  more ;  and 
the  avarice  had  such  success,  that  I  had  no  more 
thoughts  of  coming  to  a  timely  alteration  of  life, 
though  without  it  I  could  expect  no  safety,  no  tran- 
quillity in  the  possession  of  what  I  had  gained ;  a 
little  more,  and  a  little  more,  was  the  case  still. 

{She  escapes  continually^  but  is  caught  at  last. ) 

I  am  drawing  now  towards  a  new  variety  of  life. 
Upon  my  return,  being  hardened  by  a  long  race  of 
crime,  and  success  unparalleled,  I  had,  as  I  have  said, 
no  thoughts  of  laying  down  a  trade  which,  if  I  was  to 
judge  by  the  example  of  others,  must  however  end  at 
last  in  misery  and  sorrow. 

It  was  on  the  Christmas-day  following,  in  the  even- 
ing, that,  to  finish  a  long  train  of  w^ickedness,  I  went 
abroad  to  see  what  might  offer  in  my  way ;  when, 
going  by  a  working  silversmith's  in  Foster-lane,  I  saw 
a  tempting  bait  indeed,  and  not  to  be  resisted  by  one 
of  my  occupa,tion ;  for  the  shop  had  nobody  in  it, 
and  a  great  deal  of  loose  plate  lay  in  the  window,  and 
at  the  seat  of  the  man,  who  I  suppose  worked  at  one 
side  of  the  shop. 


1 88  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

I  went  boldly  in,  and  was  just  going  to  lay  my 
hand  upon  a  piece  of  plate,  and  might  have  done  it, 
and  carried  it  clear  off,  for  any  care  that  the  men 
who  belonged  to  the  shop  had  taken  of  it ;  but  an 
officious  fellow  in  a  house  on  the  other  side  of  the 
way,  seeing  me  go  in,  and  that  there  w^as  nobody  in 
the  shop,  comes  running  over  the  street,  and  without 
asking  me  what  I  was,  or  who,  seizes  upon  me,  and 
cries  out  for  the  people  of  the  house. 

I  had  not  touched  anything  in  the  shop,  and  see- 
ing a  glimpse  of  somebody  running  over,  I  had  so 
much  presence  of  mind  as  to  knock  very  hard  with 
my  foot  on  the  floor  of  the  house,  and  was  just  calling 
out  too,  when  the  fellow  laid  hands  on  me. 

However,  as  I  had  always  most  courage  when  I 
was  in  most  danger,  so  when  he  laid  hands  on  me  I 
stood  very  high  upon  it,  that  I  came  in  to  buy  half  a 
dozen  of  silver  spoons ;  and  to  my  good  fortune,  it 
was  a  silversmith's  that  sold  plate,  as  well  as  worked 
plate  for  other  shops.  The  fellow  laughed  at  that 
part,  and  put  such  a  value  upon  the  service  that  he 
had  done  his  neighbour,  that  he  would  have  it  be 
that  I  came  not  to  buy,  but  to  steal;  and  raising  a  great 
crowd,  I  said  to  the  master  of  the  shop,  who  by  this 
time  Avas  fetched  home  from  some  neighbouring  place, 
that  it  was  in  vain  to  make  a  noise,  and  enter  into 
talk  there  of  the  case ;  the  fellow  had  insisted  that  I 
came  to  steal,  and  he  must  prove  it,  and  I  desired  w^e 


Moll  Flanders  189 

might  go  before  a  magistrate  without  any  more  words  ; 
for  I  began  to  see  I  should  be  too  hard  for  the  man 
that  had  seized  me. 

The  master  and  mistress  of  the  shop  were  really 
not  so  violent  as  the  man  from  t'other  side  of  the 
way ;  and  the  man  said,  '  Mistress,  you  might  come 
into  the  shop  with  a  good  design  for  aught  I  know, 
but  it  seemed  a  dangerous  thing  for  you  to  come  into 
such  a  shop  as  mine  is,  when  you  see  nobody  there ; 
and  I  cannot  do  so  little  justice  to  my  neighbour,  who 
was  so  kind,  as  not  to  acknowledge  he  had  reason  on 
his  side ;  though  upon  the  whole  I  do  not  find  you 
attempted  to  take  anything,  and  I  really  know  not 
W'hat  to  do  in  it.'  I  pressed  him  to  go  before  a 
magistrate  with  me,  and  if  anything  could  be  proved 
on  me,  that  was  like  a  design,  I  should  willingly  sub- 
mit, but  if  not,  I  expected  reparation. 

Just  while  we  were  in  this  debate,  and  a  crowd  of 
people  gathered  about  the  door,  came  by  Sir  T.  B., 
an  alderman  of  the  city,  and  justice  of  the  peace,  and 
the  goldsmith  hearing  of  it,  entreated  his  worship  to 
come  in  and  decide  the  case. 

Give  the  goldsmith  his  due,  he  told  his  story  with 
a  great  deal  of  justice  and  moderation,  and  the  fellow 
that  had  come  over,  and  seized  upon  me,  told  his 
with  as  much  heat,  and  foolish  passion,  which  did  me 
good  still.  It  came  then  to  my  turn  to  speak,  and  I 
told  his  worship  that  I  was  a  stranger  in  London, 


I90  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

being  newly  come  out  of  the  north ;  that  I  lodged  in 
such  a  place,  that  I  was  passing  this  street,  and  went 
into  a  goldsmith's  shop  to  buy  half  a  dozen  of  spoons. 
By  great  good  luck  I  had  an  old  silver  spoon  in  my 
pocket,  which  I  pulled  out,  and  told  him  I  had  carried 
that  spoon  to  match  it  with  half  a  dozen  of  new  ones, 
that  it  might  match  some  I  had  in  the  country. 

That  seeing  nobody  in  the  shop,  I  knocked  with 
my  foot  very  hard  to  make  the  people  hear,  and  had 
also  called  aloud  with  my  voice  :  'tis  true,  there  was 
loose  plate  in  the  shop,  but  that  nobody  could  say  I 
had  touched  any  of  it ;  that  a  fellow  came  running 
into  the  shop  out  of  the  street,  and  laid  hands  on  me 
in  a  furious  manner,  in  the  very  moment  while  I  was 
calling  for  the  people  of  the  house ;  that  if  he  had 
really  had  a  mind  to  have  done  his  neighbour  any 
service  he  should  have  stood  at  a  distance,  and 
silently  watched  to  see  whether  I  had  touched  any- 
thing, or  no,  and  then  have  taken  me  in  the  fact. 
'  That  is  very  true,'  says  Mr.  Alderman,  and  turning 
to  the  fellow  that  stopt  me,  he  asked  him  if  it  was 
true  that  I  knocked  with  my  foot  ?  He  said  yes,  I 
had  knocked,  but  that  might  be  because  of  his  com- 
ing. '  Nay,'  says  the  alderman,  taking  him  short, 
'  now  you  contradict  yourself,  for  just  now  you  said 
she  was  in  the  shop  with  her  back  to  you,  and  did 
not  see  you  till  you  came  upon  her.'  Now  it  was 
true  that  my  back  was  partly  to  the  street,  but  yet  as 


Moll  Flanders  191 

my  business  was  of  a  kind  that  required  me  to  have 
eyes  every  way,  so  I  really  had  a  glance  of  him 
running  over,  as  I  said  before,  though  he  did  not 
perceive  it. 

After  a  full  hearing,  the  alderman  gave  it  as  his 
opinion  that  his  neighbour  was  under  a  mistake,  and 
that  I  was  innocent,  and  the  goldsmith  acquiesced  in 
it  too,  and  his  wife,  and  so  I  was  dismissed ;  but  as  I 
was  going  to  depart,  Mr.  Alderman  said,  '  But  hold, 
madam,  if  you  were  designing  to  buy  spoons,  I  hope 
you  will  not  let  my  friend  here  lose  his  customer  by 
the  mistake.'  I  readily  answered,  '  No,  sir,  I'll  buy  the 
spoons  still,  if  he  can  match  my  odd  spoon,  which  I 
brought  for  a  pattern,'  and  the  goldsmith  showed  me 
some  of  the  very  same  fashion ;  so  he  weighed  the 
spoons,  and  they  came  to  35s.,  so  I  pulls  out  my 
purse  to  pay  him,  in  which  I  had  near  twenty  guineas, 
for  I  never  went  without  such  a  sum  about  me,  what- 
ever might  happen,  and  I  found  it  of  use  at  other 
times  as  well  as  now. 

When  Mr.  Alderman  saw  my  money,  he  said, 
'  Well,  madam,  now  I  am  satisfied  you  were  wronged, 
and  it  was  for  this  reason  that  I  moved  you  should 
buy  the  spoons,  and  stayed  till  you  had  bought  them, 
for  if  you  had  not  had  money  to  pay  for  them  I 
should  have  suspected  that  you  did  not  come  into  the 
shop  to  buy,  for  the  sort  of  people  who  come  upon 
those  designs  that  you  have  been  charged  with,  are 


192  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

seldom  troubled  with  much  gold  in  their  pockets,  as 
I  see  you  are.' 

I  smiled,  and  told  his  worship,  that  then  I  owed 
something  of  his  favour  to  my  money,  but  I  hoped  he 
saw  reason  also  in  the  justice  he  had  done  me  before. 
He  said,  yes,  he  had,  but  this  had  confirmed  his 
opinion,  and  he  was  fully  satisfied  now  of  my  having 
been  injured.  So  I  came  well  off  from  an  affair  in 
which  I  was  at  the  very  brink  of  destruction. 

It  was  but  three  days  after  this,  that  not  at  all 
made  cautious  by  my  former  danger,  as  I  used  to  be, 
and  still  pursuing  the  art  which  I  had  so  long  been 
employed  in,  I  ventured  into  a  house  where  I  saw  the 
doors  open,  and  furnished  myself  as  I  thought  verily 
without  being  perceived,  with  two  pieces  of  flowered 
silks,  such  as  they  call  brocaded  silk,  very  rich.  It 
was  not  a  mercer's  shop,  nor  a  warehouse  of  a  mercer, 
but  looked  like  a  private  dwelling-house,  and  was,  it 
seems,  inhabited  by  a  man  that  sold  goods  for  a 
weaver  to  the  mercers,  like  a  broker  or  factor. 

That  I  may  make  short  of  the  black  part  of  this 
story,  I  was  attacked  by  two  wenches  that  came  open- 
mouthed  at  me  just  as  I  was  going  out  at  the  door, 
and  one  of  them  pulled  me  back  into  the  room,  while 
the  other  shut  the  door  upon  me.  I  would  have 
given  them  good  words,  but  there  was  no  room  for  it ; 
two  fiery  dragons  could  not  have  been  more  furious ; 
they  tore  my  clothes,  bullied  and  roared,  as  if  they 


Moll  Flanders  193 

would  have  murdered  me  \  the  mistress  of  the  house 
came  next,  and  then  the  master,  and  all  outrageous. 

I  gave  the  master  very  good  words,  told  him  the 
door  was  open,  and  things  were  a  temptation  to  me, 
that  I  was  poor  and  distressed,  and  poverty  was  what 
many  could  not  resist,  and  begged  him,  with  tears,  to 
have  pity  on  me.  The  mistress  of  the  house  was 
moved  with  compassion,  and  inclined  to  have  let  me 
go,  and  had  almost  persuaded  her  husband  to  it  also, 
but  the  saucy  wenches  were  run  even  before  they 
were  sent,  and  had  fetched  a  constable,  and  then  the 
master  said  he  could  not  go  back,  I  must  go  before  a 
justice ;  and,  answered  his  wife,  that  he  might  come 
into  trouble  himself  if  he  should  let  me  go. 

The  sight  of  a  constable  indeed  struck  me,  and  I 
thought  I  should  have  sunk  into  the  ground ;  I  fell 
into  faintings,  and  indeed  the  people  themselves 
thought  I  would  have  died,  when  the  woman  argued 
again  for  me,  and  entreated  her  husband,  seeing  they 
had  lost  nothing,  to  let  me  go.  I  offered  him  to  pay 
for  the  two  pieces,  whatever  the  value  was,  though  I 
had  not  got  them,  and  argued  that  as  he  had  his 
[jgoods,  and  had  really  lost  nothing,  it  would  be  cruel 
to  pursue  me  to  death,  and  have  my  blood  for  the 
bare  attempt  of  taking  them.  I  put  the  constable  in 
mind  too  that  I  had  broke  no  doors,  nor  carried  any- 
thing away ;  and  when  I  came  to  the  justice,  and 
pleaded  there  that  I  had  neither  broken  anything  to 

o 


194  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

get  in,  nor  carried  anything  out,  the  justice  was  in- 
cUned  to  have  released  me ;  but  the  first  saucy  jade 
that  stopped  me,  affirming  that  I  was  going  out  with 
the  goods,  but  that  she  stopped  me  and  pulled  me 
back,  the  justice  upon  that  point  committed  me,  and 
I  was  carried  to  Newgate,  that  horrid  place  !  My 
very  blood  chills  at  the  mention  of  its  name  ;  the 
place  where  so  many  of  my  comrades  had  been  locked 
up,  and  from  whence  they  went  to  the  fatal  tree ;  the 
place  where  my  mother  suffered  so  deeply,  where  I 
was  brought  into  the  world,  and  from  whence  I  ex- 
pected no  redemption,  but  by  an  infamous  death  :  to 
conclude,  the  place  that  had  so  long  expected  me, 
and  which  with  so  much  art  and  success  I  had  so  long 
avoided. 

I  was  now  fixed  indeed  ;  'tis  impossible  to  describe 
the  terror  of  my  mind,  when  I  was  first  brought  in, 
and  when  I  looked  round  upon  all  the  horrors  of  that 
dismal  place  :  I  looked  on  myself  as  lost,  and  that  I 
had  nothing  to  think  of  but  of  going  out  of  the  world, 
and  that  with  the  utmost  infamy ;  the  hellish  noise, 
the  roaring,  swearing  and  clamour,  the  stench  and 
nastiness,  and  all  the  dreadful  afflicting  things  that  I 
saw  there,  joined  to  make  the  place  seem  an  emblem 
of  hell  itself,  and  a  kind  of  an  entrance  into  it. 

Now  I  reproached  myself  with  the  many  hints  I 
had  had,  as  I  have  mentioned  above,  from  my  own 
reason,  from  the  sense  of  my  good  circumstances,  and 


Moll  Flaiiders  195 

of  the  many  dangers  I  had  escaped,  to  leave  off  while 
I  was  well,  and  how  I  had  withstood  them  all,  and 
hardened  my  thoughts  against  all  fear ;  it  seemed  to 
me  that  I  was  hurried  on  by  an  inevitable  fate  to  this 
day  of  misery,  and  that  now  I  was  to  expiate  all  my 
offences  at  the  gallows ;  that  I  was  now  to  give  satis- 
faction to  justice  with  my  blood,  and  that  I  was  to 
come  to  the  last  hour  of  my  life  and  of  my  wicked- 
ness together.  These  things  poured-  themselves  in 
upon  my  thoughts  in  a  confused  manner,  and  left  me 
overwhelmed  with  melancholy  and  despair. 

Then  I  repented  heartily  of  all  my  life  past,  but 
that  repentance  yielded  me  no  satisfaction,  no  peace, 
no,  not  in  the  least,  because,  as  I  said  to  myself,  it 
was  repenting  after  the  power  of  farther  sinning  was 
taken  away.  I  seemed  not  to  mourn  that  I  had  com- 
mitted such  crimes,  and  for  the  fact,  as  it  was  an 
offence  against  God  and  my  neighbour ;  but  that  I 
was  to  be  punished  for  it ;  I  was  a  penitent  as  I 
thought,  not  that  I  had  sinned,  but  that  I  was  to 
suffer,  and  this  took  away  all  the  comfort  of  my 
repentance  in  my  own  thoughts. 

I  got  no  sleep  for  several  nights  or  days  after  I 
came  into  that  wretched  place,  and  glad  I  would  have 
been  for  some  time  to  have  died  there,  though  I  did 
not  consider  dying  as  it  ought  to  be  considered 
neither ;  indeed  nothing  could  be  filled  with  more 
horror  to  my  imagination  than  the  very  place,  nothing 


196  Defois  Minor  Novels 

was  more  odious  to  me  than  the  company  that  was 
there.  O  !  if  I  had  but  been  sent  to  any  place  in 
the  world,  and  not  to  Newgate,  I  should  have  thought 
myself  happy. 

In  the  next  place,  how  did  the  hardened  wretches 
that  were  there  before  me  triumph  over  me  !  What ! 
Mrs.  Flanders  come  to  Newgate  at  last  ?  What,  Mrs. 
Mary,  Mrs.  Molly,  and  after  that  plain  Moll  Flanders  ! 
They  thought  the  devil  had  helped  me,  they  said, 
that  I  had  reigned  so  long ;  they  expected  me  there 
many  years  ago,  they  said,  and  was  I  come  at  last  ? 
Then  they  flouted  me  with  dejection,  welcomed  me 
to  the  place,  wished  me  joy,  bid  me  have  a  good 
heart,  not  be  cast  down,  things  might  not  be  so  bad 
as  I  feared,  and  the  like ;  then  called  for  brandy,  and 
drank  to  me  ;  but  put  it  all  up  to  my  score,  for  they 
told  me  I  was  but  just  come  to  the  college,  as  they 
called  it,  and  sure  I  had  money  in  my  pocket,  though 
they  had  none. 

I  asked  one  of  this  crew  how  long  she  had  been 
there.  She  said  four  months.  I  asked  her  how  the 
place  looked  to  her  when  she  first  came  into  it? 
'  Just  as  it  did  now  to  me,'  says  she,  '  dreadful  and 
frightful ; '  that  she  thought  she  was  in  hell ;  '  and  I 
believe  so  still,'  adds  she,  '  but  it  is  natural  to  me  now, 
I  don't  disturb  myself  about  it'  *I  suppose,'  says  I, 
'  you  are  in  no  danger  of  what  is  to  follow.'  '  Nay,'  says 
she,  '  you  are  mistaken  there  I  am  sure,  for  I  am  under 


Moll  Flanders  197 

sentence,  :??*** 

*  '-^  '•'  *       and  I  expect 

to  be  called  down  next  session/     This  '  calling  down  ' 
is  calling  down  to  their  former  judgment,  * 

TF"  ^  ^  ^  7^ 


^  *       ■  *      i  Well,'  says  I,  '  and  are 

you  thus  easy  ?'  '  Ay,'  says  she,  '  I  can't  help  myself, 
what  signifies  being  sad?  if  I  am  hanged  there's  an 
end  of  me.'  And  away  she  turned  dancing,  and  sings 
as  she  goes,  the  following  piece  of  Newgate  wit : 

'  If  I  swing  by  the  string, 
I  shall  hear  the  bell  ring  i   • 
And  then  there's  an  end  of  poor  Jenny.' 

I  mention  this  because  it  would  be  worth  the 
observation  of  any  prisoner,  who  shall  hereafter  fall 
into  the  same  misfortune,  and  come  to  that  dreadful 
place  of  Newgate,  how  time,  necessity,  and  convers- 
ing with  the  wretches  that  are  there,  familiarises  the 
place  to  them ;  how  at  last  they  become  reconciled 
to  that  which  at  first  was  the  greatest  dread  upon 
their  spirits  in  the  world,  and  are  as  impudently 
cheerful  and  merry  in  their  misery  as  they  were  when 
out  of  it. 

I  cannot  say,  as  some  do,  this  devil  is  not  so  black 
as  he  is  painted ;  for  indeed  no  colours  can  represent 
that  place  to  the  life ;  nor  any  soul  conceive  aright  of 

^  The  bell  at  St.    Sepulchre's,  which  tolls  upon  execution- 
day. 


198  Defo^s  Minor  Novels 

it,  but  those  who  have  been  sufferers  there.  But 
how  hell  should  become  by  degrees  so  natural,  and 
not  only  tolerable,  but  even  agreeable,  is  a  thing  un- 
intelligible, but  by  those  who  have  experienced  it,  as 
I  have. 

The  same  night  that  I  was  sent  to  Newgate  I 
sent  the  news  of  it  to  my  old  governess,  who  was  sur- 
prised at  it  you  may  be  sure,  and  spent  the  night 
almost  as  ill  out  of  Newgate  as  I  did  in  it. 

The  next  morning  she  came  to  see  me ;  she  did 
what  she  could  to  comfort  me,  but  she  saw  that  was 
to  no  purpose  ;  however,  as  she  said,  to  sink  under 
the  weight  was  but  to  increase  the  weight ;  she  im- 
mediately applied  herself  to  all  the  proper  methods 
to  prevent  the  effects  of  it,  which  we  feared,  and  first 
she  found  out  the  two  fiery  jades  that  had  surprised 
me ;  she  tampered  with  them,  persuaded  them, 
offered  them  money,  and,  in  a  word,  tried  all  imagin- 
able ways  to  prevent  a  prosecution ;  she  offered  one 
of  the  wenches  ;£ioo  to  go  aw^ay  from  her  mistress, 
and  not  to  appear  against  me  ;  but  she  was  so  resolute, 
that  though  she  was  but  a  servant-maid  at  £yTy  a  year 
wages,  or  thereabouts,  she  refused  it,  and  would  have 
refused,  as  my  governess  said  she  believed,  if  she  had 
offered  her  ;^5oo.  Then  she  attacked  the  other 
maid ;  she  was  not  so  hard-hearted  as  the  other,  and 
sometimes  seemed  inclined  to  be  merciful ;  but  the 
first  wench  kept  her  up,  and  would  not  so  much  as 


Moll  Flanders  199 

let   my   governess  talk   with   her,   but  threatened   to 
have  her  up  for  tampering  with  the  evidence. 

Then  she  applied  to  the  master,  that  is  to  say,  the 
man  whose  goods  had  been  stolen,  and  particularly 
to  his  wife,  who  was  inclined  at  first  to  have  some 
compassion  for  me ;  she  found  the  woman  the  same 
still,  but  the  man  alleged  he  was  bound  to  prosecute, 
and  that  he  should  forfeit  his  recognisance. 

My  governess  offered  to  find  friends  that  should 
get  his  recognisance  off  the  file,  as  they  call  it, 
and  that  he  should  not  suffer ;  but  it  was  not  possible 
to  convince  him  that  he  could  be  safe  any  way  in  the 
world  but  by  appearing  against  me ;  so  I  was  to  have 
three  witnesses  of  fact  against  me,  the  master  and  his 
two  maids ;  that  is  to  say,  I  was  as  certain  to  be  cast 
for  my  life  as  I  was  that  I  was  alive,  and  I  had  nothing 
to  do  but  to  think  of  dying.  I  had  but  a  sad  founda- 
tion to  build  upon  for  that,  as  I  said  before,  for  all 
my  repentance  appeared  to  me  to  be  only  the  effect 
of  my  fear  of  death,  not  a  sincere  regret  for  the  wicked 
life  that  I  had  lived,  and  which  had  brought  this 
misery  upon  me,  or  for  the  offending  my  Creator, 
who  was  now  suddenly  to  be  my  judge. 

I  lived  many  days  here  under  the  utmost  horror  ; 
I  had  death  as  it  were  in  view,  and  thought  of  nothing 
night  or  day,  but  of  gibbets  and  halters,  evil  spirits 
and  devils ;  it  is  not  to  be  expressed  how  I  was 
harassed,  between  the  dreadful  apprehensions  of  death, 


200  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  the  terror  of  my  conscience  reproaching  me  with 
my  past  horrible  Hfe. 

The  ordinary  of  Newgate  came  to  me,  and  talked 
a  Httle  in  his  way,  but  all  his  divinity  run  upon  con- 
fessing my  crime,  as  he  called  it  (though  he  knew 
not  what  I  was  in  for),  making  a  full  discovery,  and 
the  like,  without  which  he  told  me  God  would  never 
forgive  me ;  and  he  said  so  little  to  the  purpose  that 
I  had  no  manner  of  consolation  from  him ;  and  then 
to  observe  the  poor  creature  preaching  confession  and 
repentance  to  me  in  the  morning,  and  find  him 
drunk  with  brandy  by  noon,  this  had  something  in  it 
so  shocking,  that  I  began  to  nauseate  the  man,  and 
his  work  too  by  degrees,  for  the  sake  of  the  man ;  so 
that  I  desired  him  to  trouble  me  no  more. 

I  know  not  how  it  was,  but  by  the  indefatigable 
application  of  my  diligent  governess  I  had  no  bill 
preferred  against  me  the  first  session,  I  mean  to  the 
grand  jury,  at  Guildhall ;  so  I  had  another  month  or 
five  weeks  before  me,  and  without  doubt  this  ought 
to  have  been  accepted  by  me  as  so  much  time  given 
me  for  reflection  upon  what  was  past,  and  preparation 
for  what  was  to  come ;  I  ought  to  have  esteemed  it 
as  a  space  given  me  for  repentance,  and  have  em- 
ployed it  as  such ;  but  it  was  not  in  me.  I  was 
sorry,  as  before,  for  being  in  Newgate,  but  had  few 
signs  of  repentance  about  me. 

On  the  contrary,  like  the  water  in  the  hollows  of 


Moll  Flanders  201 

mountains,  which  petrifies  and  turns  into  stone  what- 
ever they  are  suffered  to  drop  upon  ;  so  the  continual 
conversing  with  such  a  crew  of  hell-hounds  had  the 
same  common  operation  upon  me  as  upon  other 
people ;  I  degenerated  into  stone,  I  turned  first 
stupid  and  senseless,  and  then  brutish  and  thought- 
less, and  at  last  raving  mad  as  any  of  them ;  in  short, 
I  became  as  naturally  pleased  and  easy  with  the 
place,  as  if  indeed  I  had  been  born  there. 

It  is  scarce  possible  to  imagine  that  our  natures 
should  be  capable  of  so  much  degeneracy,  as  to  make 
that  pleasant  and  agreeable,  that  in  itself  is  the  most 
complete  misery.  Here  was  a  circumstance,  that  I 
think  it  is  scarce  possible  to  mention  a  worse ;  I  was 
as  exquisitely  miserable  as  it  was  possible  for  any 
one  to  be,  that  had  life  and  health,  and  money  to 
help  them  as  I  had. 

I  had  a  weight  of  guilt  upon  me,  enough  to  sink 
any  creature  who  had  the  least  power  of  reflection 
left,  and  had  any  sense  upon  them  of  the  happiness 
of  this  life,  or  the  misery  of  another ;  I  had  at  first 
some  remorse  indeed,  but  no  repentance ;  I  had  now 
neither  remorse  or  repentance.  I  had  a  crime 
charged  on  me,  the  punishment  of  which  was  death  ; 
the  proof  so  evident,  that  there  was  no  room  for  me, 
so  much  as  to  plead  Not  guilty ;  I  had  the  name  of 
an  old  offender,  so  that  I  had  nothing  to  expect  but 
death,  neither  had  I  myself  any  thoughts  of  escaping, 


202  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  yet  a  certain  strange  lethargy  of  soul  possessed  me  ; 
I  had  no  trouble,  no  apprehensions,  no  sorrow  about 
me ;  the  first  surprise  was  gone ;  I  was,  I  may  well 
say,  I  know  not  how ;  my  senses,  my  reason,  nay,  my 
conscience,  were  all  asleep ;  my  course  of  life  for 
forty  years  had  been  a  horrid  complication  of  wicked- 
ness, whoredom,  adultery,  incest,  lying,  theft,  and,  in 
a  word,  everything  but  murder  and  treason  had  been 
my  practice,  from  the  age  of  eighteen,  or  thereabouts, 
to  threescore ;  and  now  I  was  ingulfed  in  the  misery 
of  punishment,  and  had  an  infamous  death  at  the 
door,  and  yet  I  had  no  sense  of  my  condition,  no 
thought  of  heaven  or  hell,  at  least  that  went  any 
further  than  a  bare  flying  touch,  like  the  stitch  or 
pain  that  gives  a  hint  and  goes  off;  I  neither  had  a 
heart  to  ask  God's  mercy,  or  indeed  to  think  of  it. 
And  in  this  I  think  I  have  given  a  brief  description 
of  the  completest  misery  on  earth. 

{hi  Newgate  she  ?fieefs  her  highwayman  husba?2d,  is 
condemned  to  death  but  reprieved^  ajid  is  7vith  him  sent  to 
A??2erica,  where  she  has  i?i  early  life  unwittingly  married 
her  brother.  She  comes  to  terms  with  her  family  there, 
becotnes  prosperous,  and  dies  in  the  odour  of  sanctity. 
But  the  interest  ceases  with  her  reprieve.^ 


IIL_' MEMOIRS  OF  A  CAVALIER' 

(These  Memoirs  rmik  second  to  {or  may  even  be 
bracketed  witli)  Moll  Flanders  among  Defoe^s  inventions 
other  than  Robinson  Crusoe,  supposing  that  they  are 
i?iventio7ts,  or  rather  {for  the  facts  are  exactly  enough 
drawn  from  Clarendo7i  and  other  sources^  workings  up  of 
public  niaterial.  If  they  are  anything  else,  it  is  practi- 
cally incomprehensible  that  they  should  not  have  been 
chmned.  They  are  purely  descriptive,  and  have  little 
or  no  ifiterest  of  character,  though  an  early  scene  with 
an  Italian  courtezan  {not  in  the  modern  taste)  has 
rejnarkable  merits.  The  first  passage  I  take  shall  be 
the  passage  of  the  lech,  for  the  Cavalier,  like  Captain 
Dalgetty,  serves  the  great  Gustavus. ) 

Tilly  was  now  joined  with  the  Duke  of  Bavaria, 
and  might  together  make  about  twenty-two  thousand 
men ;  and  in  order  to  keep  the  Swedes  out  of  the 
country  of  Bavaria,  had  planted  themselves  along  the 
banks  of  the  river  Lech,  which  runs  on  the  edge  of 


204  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

the  duke's  territories ;  and  having  fortified  the  other 
side  of  the  river,  and  planted  his  cannon  for  several 
miles,  at  all  the  convenient  places  on  the  river, 
resolved  to  dispute  the  king's  passage, 

I  shall  be  the  longer  in  relating  this  account  of 
the  Lech,  being  esteemed  in  those  days  as  great  an 
action  as  any  battle  or  siege  of  that  age,  and  particu- 
larly famous  for  the  disaster  of  the  gallant  old  general 
Tilly ;  and  for  that  I  can  be  more  particular  in  it 
than  other  accounts,  having  been  an  eye-witness  to 
every  part  of  it. 

The  king  being  truly  informed  of  the  disposition 
of  the  Bavarian  army,  was  once  of  the  mind  to  have 
left  the  banks  of  the  Lech,  have  repassed  the  Danube, 
and  so  setting  down  before  Ingolstat,  the  duke's 
capital  city,  by  the  taking  that  strong  town,  to  have 
made  his  entrance  into  Bavaria  and  the  conquest  of 
such  a  fortress,  one  entire  action ;  but  the  strength  of 
the  place,  and  the  difficulty  of  maintaining  his  army 
in  an  enemy's  country,  while  Tilly  was  so  strong  in 
the  field,  diverted  him  from  that  design ;  he  therefore 
concluded  that  Tilly  was  first  to  be  beaten  out  of  the 
country,  and  then  the  siege  of  Ingolstat  would  be 
easier. 

'Whereupon  the  king  resolved  to  go  and  view  the 
situation  of  the  enemy.  His  majesty  went  out  the 
2nd  of  April  with  a  strong  party  of  horse,  which  I  had 
the  honour  to  command ;  we  marched  as  near  as  we 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  205 

could  to  the  banks  of  the  river,  not  to  be  too  much 
exposed  to  the  enemy's  cannon,  and  having  gained  a 
httle  height,  where  the  whole  course  of  the  river 
might  be  seen,  the  king  halted,  and  commanded  to 
draw  up.  The  king  alighted,  and  calling  me  to  him, 
examined  every  reach  and  turning  of  the  river  by  his 
glass,  but  finding  the  river  run  a  long  and  almost  a 
straight  course,  he  could  find  no  place  which  he 
liked,  but  at  last  turning  himself  north,  and  looking 
down  the  stream,  he  found  the  river  fetching  a  long 
reach,  double  short  upon  itself,  making  a  round  and 
very  narrow  point.  'There's  a  point  will  do  our 
business,'  says  the  king,  'and,  if  the  ground  be  good, 
I'll  pass  there,  let  Tilly  do  his  worst.' 

He  immediately  ordered  a  small  party  of  horse  to 
view  the  ground,  and  to  bring  him  word  particularly 
how  high  the  bank  was  on  each  side  and  at  the  point ; 
'and  he  shall  have  fifty  dollars,'  says  the  king,  'that  will 
bring  me  word  how  deep  the  water  is.'  I  asked  his 
majesty  leave  to  let  me  go,  which  he  would  by  no 
means  allow  of;  but  as  the  party  was  drawing  out,  a 
Serjeant  of  dragoons  told  the  king,  if  he  pleased  to 
let  him  go  disguised  as  a  boor,  he  would  bring  him 
an  account  of  everything  he  desired.  The  king  liked 
the  motion  well  enough,  and  the  fellow  being  very 
well  acquainted  with  the  country,  puts  on  a  plough- 
man's habit,  and  went  away  immediately  with  a  long 
pole  upon  his  shoulder ;  the  horse  lay  all  this  while 


2o6  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

in  the  woods,  and  the  king  stood  undiscerned  by  the 
enemy  on  the  Httle  hill  aforesaid.  The  dragoon  with 
his  long  pole  comes  down  boldly  to  the  bank  of  the 
river,  and  calling  to  the  sentinels  which  Tilly  had 
placed  on  the  other  bank,  talked  with  them,  asked 
them  if  they  could  not  help  him  over  the  river,  and 
pretended  he  wanted  to  come  to  them.  At  last  be- 
ing come  to  the  point,  where,  as  I  said,  the  river 
makes  a  short  turn,  he  stands  parleying  with  them  a 
great  while,  and  sometimes  pretending  to  wade  over, 
he  puts  his  long  pole  into  the  water,  then  finding  it 
pretty  shallow,  he  pulls  off  his  hose  and  goes  in,  still 
thrusting  his  pole  in  before  him,  till  being  gotten  up 
to  his  middle,  he  could  reach  beyond  him,  where  it 
was  too  deep,  and  so  shaking  his  head,  comes  back 
again.  The  soldiers  on  the  other  side  laughing  at 
him,  asked  him  if  he  could  swim  ?  He  said  no. 
'Why  you  fool  you,'  says  one  of  the  sentinels,  'the 
channel,  of  the  river  is  twenty  feet  deep.'  '  How  do 
you  know  that  ? '  says  the  dragoon.  '  Why  our 
engineer,'  says  he,  'measured  it  yesterday.'  This 
was  what  he  wanted,  but  not  yet  fully  satisfied ;  '  Ay 
but,'  says  he,  '  may  be  it  may  not  be  very  broad,  and 
if  one  of  you  would  wade  in  to  meet  me  till  I  could 
reach  you  with  my  pole,  I'd  give  him  half  a  ducat  to 
pull  me  over.'  The  innocent  way  of  his  discourse  so 
deluded  the  soldiers,  that  one  of  them  immediately 
strips   and    goes    in   up    to    the   shoulders,  and    our 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  207 

dragoon  goes  in  on  this  side  to  meet  him ;  but  the 
stream  took  the  other  soldier  away,  and  he  being  a 
good  swimmer,  came  swimming  over  to  this  side. 
The  dragoon  was  then  in  a  great  deal  of  pain  for  fear 
of  being  discovered,  and  was  once  going  to  kill  the 
fellow,  and  make  off;  but  at  last  resolved  to  carry  on 
the  humour,  and  having  entertained  the  fellow  with  a 
tale  of  a  tub,  about  the  Swedes  stealing  his  oats,  the 
fellow  being  cold,  wanted  to  be  gone,  and  as  he  was 
willing  to  be  rid  of  him,  pretended  to  be  very  sorry 
he  could  not  get  over  the  river,  and  so  makes  off. 

By  this,  however,  he  learned  both  the  depth  and 
breadth  of  the  channel,  the  bottom  and  nature  of 
both  shores,  and  everything  the  king  wanted  to  know. 
We  could  see  him  from  the  hill  by  our  glasses  very 
plain,  and  could  see  the  soldier  naked  with  him  ;  says 
the  king,  'He  will  certainly  be  discovered  and  knocked 
on  the  head  from  the  other  side  :  he  is  a  fool,'  says 
the  king,  '  if  he  does  not  kill  the  fellow  and  run  off; ' 
but  when  the  dragoon  told  his  tale,  the  king  was  ex- 
tremely well  satisfied  with  him,  gave  him  one  hundred 
dollars,  and  made  him  a  quarter-master  to  a  troop  of 
cuirassiers. 

The  king  having  further  examined  the  dragoon,  he 
gave  him  a  very  distinct  account  of  the  shore  and 
ground  on  this  side,  which  he  found  to  be  higher 
than  the  enemy's  by  ten  or  twelve  foot,  and  a  hard 
gravel. 


2o8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

Hereupon  the  king  resolves  to  pass  there,  and  in 
order  to  it,  gives  himself  particular  directions  for  such 
a  bridge  as  I  believe  never  army  passed  a  river  on 
before  nor  since. 

His  bridge  was  only  loose  planks  laid  upon  large 
trestles,  in  the  same  homely  manner  as  I  have  seen 
bricklayers  raise  a  low  scaffold  to  build  a  brick  wall ; 
the  trestles  were  made  higher  than  one  another  to 
answer  to  the  river,  as  it  became  deeper  or  shallower, 
and  [it]  was  all  framed  and  fitted  before  any  appear- 
ance was  made  of  attempting  to  pass. 

When  all  was  ready,  the  king  brings  his  army 
down  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  and  plants  his  cannon 
as  the  enemy  had  done,  some  here  and  some  there, 
to  amuse  them. 

At  night,  April  4th,  the  king  commanded  about 
two  thousand  men  to  march  to  the  point,  and  to 
throw  up  a  trench  on  either  side,  and  quite  round  it, 
with  a  battery  of  six  pieces  of  cannon  at  each  end, 
besides  three  small  mounts,  one  at  the  point  and  one 
of  each  side,  which  had  each  of  them  two  pieces  upon 
them.  This  work  was  begun  so  briskly,  and  so  well 
carried  on,  the  king  firing  all  the  night  from  the  other 
parts  of  the  river,  that  by  daylight  all  the  batteries  at 
the  new  work  were  mounted,  the  trench  lined  with 
two  thousand  musketeers,  and  all  the  utensils  of  the 
bridge  lay  ready  to  be  put  together. 

Now  the  imperialists  discovered  the  design,  but    it 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  209 

j  was  too  late  to  hinder  it  The  musketeers  in  the 
j  great  trench,  and  the  five  new  batteries,  made  such 
I  continual  fire,  that  the  other  bank  which,  as  before, 
lay  twelve  feet  below  them,  was  too  hot  for  the 
imperialists ;  whereupon  Tilly,  to  be  provided  for  the 
king,  at  his  coming  over,  falls  to  work  in  a  wood  right 
against  the  point,  and  raises  a  great  battery  for  twenty 
pieces  of  cannon,  with  a  breastwork,  or  line,  as  near 
the  river  as  he  could,  to  cover  his  men,  thinking  that 
when  the  king  had  built  his  bridge,  he  might  easily 
beat  it  down  with  his  cannon. 

But  the  king  had  doubly  prevented  him,  first,  by 
laying  his  bridge  so  low  that  none  of  Tilly's  shot  could 
hurt  it ;  for  the  bridge  lay  not  above  half  a  foot  above 
the  water's  edge,  by  which  means  the  king,  who  in 
that  showed  himself  an  excellent  engineer,  had 
secured  it  from  any  batteries  to  be  made  within  the 
land,  and  the  angle  of  the  bank  secured  it  from  the 
remoter  batteries  on  the  other  side,  and  the  continual 
fire  of  the  cannon  and  small  shot  beat  the  imperialists 
from  their  station  just  against  it,  they  having  no 
iworks  to  cover  them. 

'  And  in  the  second  place,  to  secure  his  passage,  he 
[sent  over  about  two  hundred  men,  and  after  that  two 
jhundred  more,  who  had  orders  to  cast  up  a  large 
jravelin  on  the  other  bank,  just  where  he  designed  to 
land  his  bridge ;  this  was  done  with  such  expedition 
;oo,  that  it  was  finished  before  night,  and  in  condition 

p 


210  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

to  receive  all  the  shot  of  Tilly's  great  battery,  and 
effectually  covered  his  bridge.  While  this  was  doing, 
the  king  on  his  side  lays  over  his  bridge.  Both  sides 
wrought  hard  all  day  and  all  night,  as  if  the  spade, 
not  the  sword,  had  been  to  decide  the  controversy, 
and  that  he  had  got  the  victory  whose  trenches  and 
batteries  were  first  ready.  In  the  meanwhile  the 
cannon  and  musket  bullets  flew  like  hail,  and  made 
the  service  so  hot,  that  both  sides  had  enough  to  do 
to  make  their  men  stand  to  their  work ;  the  king  in 
the  hottest  of  it,  animated  his  men  by  his  presence, 
and  Tilly,  to  give  him  his  due,  did  the  same ;  for  the 
execution  was  so  great,  and  so  many  officers  killed, 
General  Attringer  wounded,  and  two  serjeant-majors 
killed,  that  at  last  Tilly  himself  was  obliged  to  expose 
himself,  and  to  come  up  to  the  very  face  of  our  line 
to  encourage  his  men,  and  give  his  necessary  orders. 

And  here,  about  one  o'clock,  much  about  the 
time  that  the  king's  bridge  and  works  were  finished, 
and  just  as  they  said  he  had  ordered  to  fall  on  upon 
our  ravelin  with  three  thousand  foot,  was  the  brave 
old  Tilly  slain  with  a  musket  bullet  in  the  thigh.  He 
was  carried  off  to  Ingolstat,  and  lived  some  days  after, 
but  died  of  that  wound  the  same  day  as  the  king  had 
his  horse  shot  under  him  at  the  siege  of  that  town. 

We  made  no  question  of  passing  the  river  here, 
having  brought  everything  so  forward,  and  with  such 
extraordinary  success ;  but  we  should  have  found  it  a 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  211 

very  hot  piece  of  work  if  Tilly  had  lived  one  day 
more ;  and,  if  I  may  give  my  opinion  of  it,  having 
seen  Tilly's  battery  and  breastwork,  in  the  face  of 
which  we  must  have  passed  the  river,  I  must  say, 
that  whenever  we  had  marched,  if  Tilly  had  fallen  in 
with  his  horse  and  foot,  placed  in  that  trench,  the 
whole  army  would  have  passed  as  much  danger  as  in 
the  face  of  a  strong  town  in  the  storming  a  counter- 
scarp. The  king  himself,  when  he  saw  with  what 
judgment  Tilly  had  prepared  his  works,  and  w^hat 
danger  he  must  have  run,  would  often  say,  that  day's 
success  w^as  every  way  equal  to  the  victory  of  Leipsic. 

Tilly  being  hurt  and  carried  off,  as  if  the  soul  of 
the  army  had  been  lost,  they  began  to  draw  off;  the 
Duke  of  Bavaria  took  horse,  and  rid  away  as  if  he 
had  fled  out  of  battle  for  his  life. 

The  other  generals,  with  a  little  more  caution,  as 
well  as  courage,  drew  off  by  degrees,  sending  their 
cannon  and  baggage  away  first,  and  leaving  some  to 
continue  firing  on  the  bank  of  the  river  to  conceal 
their  retreat.  The  river  preventing  any  intelligence, 
we  knew  nothing  of  the  disaster  befallen  them ;  and 
the  king,  who  looked  for  blows,  having  finished  his 
bridge  and  ravelin,  ordered  to  run  a  line  of  palisadoes, 
to  take  in  more  ground  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  to 
cover  the  first  troops  he  should  send  over ;  this  being 
finished  the  same  night,  the  king  sends  over  a  party 
of  his  guards   to  relieve  the  men  who  were  in  the 


212  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

ravelin,  and  commanded  six  hundred  musketeers  to 
man  the  new  Hne  out  of  the  Scots'  brigade. 

Early  in  the  morning,  a  small  party  of  Scots,  com- 
manded by  one  Captain  Forbes,  of  my  Lord  Rea's 
regiment,  were  sent  out  to  learn  something  of  the 
enemy,  the  king  observing  they  had  not  fired  all 
night ;  and  while  this  party  were  abroad,  the  army 
stood  in  battalia,  and  my  old  friend.  Sir  John 
Hepburn,  whom  of  all  men  the  king  most  depended 
upon  for  any  desperate  service,  was  ordered  to  pass 
the  bridge  with  his  brigade,  and  to  draw  up  without 
the  line,  with  command  to  advance  as  he  found  the 
horse,  who  were  to  second  him,  came  over. 

Sir  John  being  passed  without  the  trench,  meets 
Captain  Forbes  with  some  prisoners,  and  the  good 
news  of  the  enemy's  retreat.  He  sends  him  directly 
to  the  king,  who  was  by  this  time  at  the  head  of  his 
army,  in  full  battaha,  ready  to  follow  his  vanguard, 
expecting  a  hot  day's  work  of  it.  Sir  John  sends 
messenger  after  messenger  to  the  king,  entreating 
him  to  give  him  orders  to  advance ;  but  the  king 
would  not  suffer  him ;  for  he  was  ever  upon  his 
guard,  and  would  not  venture  a  surprise ;  so  the 
army  continued  on  this  side  the  Lech  all  day  and  the 
next  night.  In  the  morning  the  king  sent  for  me, 
and  ordered  me  to  draw  out  three  hundred  horse, 
and  a  colonel  with  six  hundred  horse,  and  a  colonel 
with  eight  hundred  dragoons,  and  ordered  us  to  enter 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  213 

the  wood  by  three  ways,  but  so  as  to  be  able  to  reHeve 
one  another;  and  then  ordered  Sir  John  Hepburn, 
with  his  brigade,  to  advance  to  the  edge  of  the  w^ood, 
to  secure  our  retreat ;  and  at  the  same  time  com- 
manded another  brigade  of  foot  to  pass  the  bridge,  if 
need  w^ere,  to  second  Sir  John  Hepburn,  so  warily 
did  this  prudent  general  proceed. 

We  advanced  with  our  horse  into  the  Bavarian 
camp,  which  we  found  forsaken ;  the  plunder  of  it 
was  inconsiderable,  for  the  exceeding  caution  the  king 
had  used  gave  them  time  to  carry  of£  all  their  bag- 
gage ;  we  followed  them  three  or  four  miles,  and 
returned  to  our  camp. 

I  confess  I  was  most  diverted  that  day  with  view- 
ing the  works  which  Tilly  had  cast  up,  and  must  own 
again,  that  had  he  not  been  taken  off,  we  had  met 
with  as  desperate  a  piece  of  work  as  ever  w^as 
attempted.  The  next  day  the  rest  of  the  cavalry 
came  up  to  us,  commanded  by  Gustavus  Horn,  and 
the  king  and  the  whole  army  followed  ;  we  advanced 
through  the  heart  of  Bavaria,  took  Rain  at  the  first 
summons,  and  several  other  small  towns,  and  sat 
dow^n  before  Ausburg. 

Ausburg,  though  a  protestant  city,  had  a  popish 
Bavarian  garrison  in  it  of  above  five  thousand  men, 
commanded  by  a  Fiigger,  a  great  family  in  Bavaria. 
The  governor  had  posted  several  little  parties,  as  out- 
scouts,  at  the  distance  of  two  miles  and  a  half,  or 


214  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

three  miles,  from  the  town.  The  king,  at  his  coming 
up  to  this  town,  sends  me  with  my  Httle  troop,  and 
three  companies  of  dragoons,  to  beat  in  these  out- 
scouts.  The  first  party  I  Hght  on  was  not  above 
sixteen  men,  who  had  made  a  small  barricado  across 
the  road,  and  stood  resolutely  upon  their  guard.  I 
commanded  the  dragoons  to  alight,  and  open  the 
barricado,  which,  while  they  resolutely  performed,  the 
sixteen  men  gave  them  two  volleys  of  their  muskets, 
and  through  the  enclosures  made  their  retreat  to  a 
turnpike  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  farther.  We 
passed  their  first  traverse,  and  coming  up  to  the 
turnpike  I  found  it  defended  by  two  hundred 
musketeers.  I  prepared  to  attack  them,  sending 
word  to  the  king  how  strong  the  enemy  was,  and 
desired  some  foot  to  be  sent  to  me.  My  dragoons 
fell  on,  and  though  the  enemy  made  a  very  hot  fire, 
had  beat  them  from  this  post  before  two  hundred 
foot,  which  the  king  had  sent  me,  had  come  up. 
Being  joined  with  the  foot,  I  followed  the  enemy, 
who  retreated  fighting,  till  they  came  under  the  can- 
non of  a  strong  redoubt,  where  they  drew  up,  and  I 
could  see  another  body  of  foot  of  about  three  hundred 
join  them  out  of  the  works ;  upon  which  I  halted, 
and  considering  I  was  in  view  of  the  town,  and  a 
great  way  from  the  army,  I  faced  about,  and  began  to 
march  off;  as  we  marched  I  found  the  enemy  followed, 
but  kept  at  a  distance,  as  if  they  only  designed  to 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  215 

observe  me.  I  had  not  marched  far,  but  I  heard  a 
volley  of  small  shot,  answered  by  two  or  three  more, 
which  I  presently  apprehended  to  be  at  the  turnpike, 
where  I  had  left  a  small  guard  of  twenty-six  men, 
with  a  lieutenant.  Immediately  I  detached  one 
hundred  dragoons  to  relieve  my  men,  and  secure  my 
retreat,  following  myself  as  fast  as  the  foot  could 
march.  The  lieutenant  sent  me  back  word  the  post 
was  taken  by  the  enemy,  and  my  men  cut  off}  upon 
this  I  doubled  my  pace,  and  when  I  came  up  I  found 
it  as  the  lieutenant  said ;  for  the  post  was  taken  and 
manned  with  three  hundred  musketeers,  and  three 
troops  of  horse  \  by  this  time  also  I  found  the  party 
in  my  rear  made  up  towards  me,  so  that  I  was  like  to 
be  charged,  in  a  narrow  place,  both  in  front  and 
rear. 

I  saw  there  was  no  remedy  but  with  all  my  force 
to  fall  upon  that  party  before  me,  and  so  to  break 
through  before  those  from  the  town  could  come  up 
with  me ;  wherefore,  commanding  my  dragoons  to 
alight,  I  ordered  them  to  fall  on  upon  the  foot ;  their 
horse  were  drawn  up  in  an  enclosed  field  on  one  side 
of  the  road,  a  great  ditch  securing  the  other  side,  so 
that  they  thought,  if  I  charged  the  foot  in  front,  they 
would  fall  upon  my  flank,  while  those  behind  would 
charge  my  rear ;  and  indeed  had  the  other  come  in 
time,  they  had  cut  me  off.  My  dragoons  made  three 
fair  charges  on  their  foot,  but  were  received  with  so 


2i6  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

much  resolution,  and  so  brisk  a  fire,  that  they  were 
beaten  off,  and  sixteen  men  killed.  Seeing  them  so 
rudely  handled,  and  the  horse  ready  to  fall  in,  I 
relieved  them  with  one  hundred  musketeers,  and  they 
renewed  the  attack  at  the  same  time  with  my  troop 
of  horse  ;  flanked  on  both  wings  with  fifty  musketeers, 
I  faced  their  horse,  but  did  not  offer  to  charge  them ; 
the  case  grew  now  desperate,  and  the  enemy  behind 
were  just  at  my  heels,  with  near  six  hundred  men. 
The  captain  who  commanded  the  musketeers,  who 
flanked  my  horse,  came  up  to  me ;  says  he,  '  If  we 
do  not  force  this  pass  all  will  be  lost;  if  you  will 
draw  out  your  troop  and  twenty  of  my  foot,  and  fall 
in,  I'll  engage  to  keep  off  the  horse  with  the  rest.' 
'  With  all  my  heart,'  says  I. 

Immediately  I  wheeled  off  my  troop,  and  a  small 
party  of  the  musketeers  followed  me,  and  fell  in  with 
the  dragoons  and  foot,  who  seeing  the  danger  too,  as 
well  as  I,  fought  like  madmen ;  the  foot  at  the  turn- 
pike were  not  able  to  hinder  our  breaking  through, 
so  we  made  our  way  out,  killing  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  of  them,  and  put  the  rest  into  confusion. 

But  now  was  I  in  as  great  a  difficulty  as  before, 
how  to  fetch  off  my  brave  captain  of  foot,  for  they 
charged  home  upon  him.  He  defended  himself  with 
extraordinary  gallantry,  having  the  benefit  T)f  a  piece 
of  a  hedge  to  cover  him ;  but  he  lost  half  his  men, 
and  was  just  upon  the  point  of  being  defeated,  when 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  217 

the  king,  informed  by  a  soldier  that  escaped  from  the 
turnpike,  one  of  twenty -six,  had  sent  a  party  of  six 
hundred  dragoons  to  bring  me  off.  These  came 
upon  the  spur,  and  joined  with  me  just  as  I  had 
broke  through  the  turnpike ;  the  enemy's  foot  rallied 
behind  their  horse,  and  by  this  time  their  other  party 
was  come  in,  but  seeing  our  relief,  they  drew  off 
together, 

I  lost  above  a  hundred  men  in  these  skirmishes, 
and  killed  them  about  one  hundred  and  eighty ;  we 
secured  the  turnpike,  and  placed  a  company  of  foot 
there,  with  a  hundred  dragoons,  and  came  back  well 
beaten  to  the  army.  The  king,  to  prevent  such  un- 
certain skirmishes,  advanced  the  next  day  in  view  of 
the  town,  and,  according  to  his  custom,  sits  down 
with  his  whole  army  within  cannon-shot  of  their 
walls. 

The  king  won  this  great  city  by  force  of  words ; 
for  by  two  or  three  messages  and  letters  to  and  from 
the  citizens,  the  town  was  gained,  the  garrison  not 
daring  to  defend  them  against  their  wills.  His 
majesty  made  his  public  entrance  "into  the  city  on 
the  14th  of  April,  and,  receiving  the  comphments  of 
the  citizens,  advanced  immediately  to  Ingolstat,  which 
is  accounted,  and  really  is,  the  strongest  town  in  all 
these  parts. 

The  town  had  a  very  strong  garrison  in  it,  and  the 
Duke  of  Bavaria  lay  intrenched  with  his  army  under 


2i8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

the  walls  of  it,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  The 
king,  who  never  loved  long  sieges,  having  viewed  the 
town,  and  brought  his  army  within  musket-shot  of  it, 
called  a  council  of  war,  where  it  was  the  king's 
opinion,  in  short,  that  the  town  would  lose  him  more 
than  it  was  worth,  and  therefore  he  resolved  to  raise 
his  siege. 

Here  the  king  going  to  view  the  town,  had  his 
horse  shot  with  a  cannon-bullet  from  the  works,  which 
tumbled  the  king  and  his  horse  over  one  another, 
that  everybody  thought  he  had  been  killed,  but  he 
received  no  hurt  at  all ;  that  very  minute,  as  near  as 
could  be  learnt.  General  Tilly  died  in  the  town,  of 
the  shot  he  received  on  the  bank  of  the  Lech  as 
aforesaid. 

{The  seco7id piece  must  of  necessity  be  the  famous  retreat 
from  Marston  Moor^  which  good Jtidges  hax^e  pro?iounced 
to  be,  if  it  be  the  invented  work  of  a  civilia?t  of  letters, 
the  most  extraordinary  thing  of  the  kind  ever  dojie.) 

I  had  but  very  coarse  treatment  in  this  fight;  for 
returning  with  the  prince  from  the  pursuit  of  the  right 
wing,  and  finding  all  lost,  I  halted,  with  some  .other 
officers,  to  consider  what  to  do ;  at  first  we  were  for 
making  our  retreat  in  a  body,  and  might  have  done 
so  well  enough,  if  we  had  known  what  had  happened 
before  we  saw  ourselves  in  the  middle  of  the  enemy ; 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  219 

for  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  who  had  got  together  his 
scattered  troops,  and  joined  by  some  of  the  left  wing, 
knowing  who  we  were,  charged  us  with  great  fury. 
It  was  not  a  time  to  think  of  anything  but  getting 
away,  or  dying  upon  the  spot ;  the  prince  kept  on  in 
the  front,  and  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  by  this  charge,  cut 
off  about  three  regiments  of  us  from  our  body,  but 
bending  his  main  strength  at  the  prince,  left  us,  as  it 
were,  behind  him,  in  the  middle  of  the  field  of  battle. 
We  took  this  for  the  only  opportunity  we  could  have 
to  get  off,  and  joining  together,  we  made  across  the 
place  of  battle  in  as  good  order  as  we  could,  with  our 
carbines  presented.  In  this  posture  we  passed  by 
several  bodies  of  the  enemy's  foot,  who  stood  with 
their  pikes  charged  to  keep  us  off;  but  they  had  no 
occasion,  for  we  had  no  design  to  meddle  with  them, 
but  to  get  from  them.  Thus  we  made  a  swift  march, 
and  thought  ourselves  pretty  secure ;  but  our  work 
was  not  done  yet,  for,  on  a  sudden,  we  saw  ourselves 
under  a  necessity  of  fighting  our  way  through  a  great 
body  of  Manchester's  horse,  who  came  galloping  upon 
us  over  the  moor.  They  had,  as  we-  suppose,  been 
pursuing  'some  of  our  broken  troops  which  were  fled 
before,  and  seeing  us,  they  gave  us  a  home  charge. 
We  received  them  as  well  as  we  could,  but  pushed  to 
get  through  them,  which  at  last  we  did  with  a  consid- 
erable loss  to  them.  However,  we  lost  so  many  men, 
either  killed  or  separated  from  us  (for  all  could  not 


220  Defoe^s  Miiior  Novels 

follow  the  same  way),  that  of  our  three  regiments  we 
could  not  be  above  four  hundred  horse  together  when 
we  got  quite  clear,  and  these  were  mixt  men,  some  of 
one  troop  and  regiment,  some  of  another.  Not  that 
I  believe  many  of  us  were  killed  in  the  last  attack, 
for  we  had  plainly  the  better  of  the  enemy ;  but  our 
design  being  to  get  off,  some  shifted  for  themselves 
one  way,  and  some  another,  in  the  best  manner  they 
could,  and  as  their  several  fortunes  guided  them. 
Four  hundred  more  of  this  body,  as  I  afterwards 
understood,  having  broke  through  the  enemy's  body 
another  way,  kept  together,  and  got  into  Pontefract 
Castle,  and  three  hundred  more  made  northward,  and 
to  Skipton,  where  the*  Prince  afterwards  fetched  them 
off. 

These  few  of  us  that  were  left  together,  with  whom 
I  was,  being  now  pretty  clear  of  pursuit,  halted,  and 
began  to  inquire  who  and  what  we  were,  and  what  we 
should  do  ;  and  on  a  short  debate  I  proposed  we 
should  make  to  the  first  garrison  of  the  king's  that  we 
could  recover,  and  that  we  should  keep  together,  lest 
the  country-people  should  insult  us  upon  the  roads. 
With  this  resolution  we  pushed  on  westward  for 
Lancashire ;  but  our  misfortunes  were  not  yet  at  an 
end  :  we  travelled  very  hard,  and  got  to  a  village  upon 
the  river  Wharf,  near  Wetherby.  At  Wether  by  there 
was  a  bridge,  but  we  understood  that  a  party  from 
Leeds  had  secured  the  town  and  the  post,  in  order  to 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  221 

stop  the  flying  cavaliers,  and  that  it  would  be  very 
hard  to  get  through  there,  though,  as  we  understood 
afterwards,  there  were  no  soldiers  there  but  a  guard  of 
the  townsmen.  In  this  pickle  we  consulted  what 
course  to  take ;  to  stay  where  we  w^ere  till  morning, 
we  all  concluded  would  not  be  safe ;  some  advised  to 
take  the  stream  with  our  horses,  but  the  river,  which 
is  deep,  and  the  current  strong,  seemed  to  bid  us 
have  a  care  what  we  did  of  that  kind,  especially  in 
the  night.  We  resolved  therefore  to  refresh  ourselves 
and  our  horses,  which  indeed  is  more  than  we  did, 
and  go  on  till  we  might  come  to  a  ford  or  bridge, 
where  we  might  get  over.  Some  guides  we  had,  but 
they  either  were  foolish  or  false,  for  after  we  had  rid 
eight  or  nine  miles,  they  plunged  us  into  a  river  at  a 
place  they  called  a  ford,  but  it  was  a  very  ill  one,  for 
most  of  our  horses  swam,  and  seven  or  eight  were 
lost,  but  we  saved  the  men ;  however,  we  got  all 
ovqr. 

''IWe  made  bold  with  our  first  convenience  to  tres- 
pass upon  the  country  for  a  few  horses,  where  we 
could  find  them,  to  remount  our  men  whose  horses 
were  drowned,  and  continued  our  march ;  but  being 
obliged  to  refresh  ourselves  at  a  small  village  on  the 
edge  of  Bramham-moor,  we  found  the  country  alarmed 
by  our  taking  some  horses,  and  we  were  no  sooner 
got  on' horseback  in  the  morning,  and  entering  on  the 
moor,  but  we  understood  we  were  pursued  by  some 


222  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

troops  of  horse.  There  was  no  remedy  but  we  must 
pass  this  moor ;  and  though  our  horses  were  exceed- 
ingly tired,  yet  we  pressed  on  upon  a  round  trot,  and 
recovered  an  enclosed  country  on  the  other  side, 
where  we  halted.  And  here,  necessity  putting  us 
upon  it,  we  were  obliged  to  look  out  for  more  horses, 
for  several  of  our  men  were  dismounted,  and  others' 
horses  disabled  by  carrying  double,  those  who  lost 
their  horses  getting  up  behind  them ;  but  we  were 
supplied  by  our  enemies  against  their  will. 

The  enemy  followed  us  over  the  moor,  and  we 
having  a  woody  enclosed  country  about  us,  where  we 
were,  I  observed  by  their  moving,  they  had  lost  sight 
of  us ;  upon  which  I  proposed  concealing  ourselves 
till  we  might  judge  of  their  numbers.  We  did  so, 
and  lying  close  in  a  wood,  they  past  hastily  by  us, 
without  skirting  or  searching  the  wood,  which  was 
what  on  another  occasion  they  would  not  have  done. 
I  found  they  were  not  above  a  hundred  and  fifty 
horse,  and  considering  that  to  let  them  go  before  us, 
would  be  to  alarm  the  country,  and  stop  our  design ; 
I  thought,  since  we  might  be  able  to  deal  with  them, 
we  should  not  meet  with  a  better  place  for  it,  and 
told  the  rest  of  our  officers  my  mind,  which  all  our 
party  presently  (for  we  had  not  time  for  a  long  debate) 
agreed  to.  Immediately  upon  this  I  caused  two  men 
to  fire  their  pistols  in  the  wood,  at  two  different  places, 
as  far  asunder  as  I  could.     This  I  did  to  give  them 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  223 

an  alarm,  and  amuse  them  ;  for  being  in  the  lane, 
they  would  otherwise  have  got  through  before  we  had 
been  ready,  and  I  resolved  to  engage  them  there,  as 
soon  as  it  was  possible.  After  this  alarm,  we  rushed 
out  of  the  wood,  with  about  a  hundred  horse,  and 
charged  them  on  the  flank  in  a  broad  lane,  the  wood 
being  on  their  right.  Our  passage  into  the  lane 
being  narrow,  gave  us  some  difficulty  in  our  getting 
out  \  but  the  surprise  of  the  charge  did  our  work  ;  for 
the  enemy  thinking  we  had  been  a  mile  or  two  before, 
had  not  the  least  thoughts  of  this  onset,  till  they  heard 
us  in  the  wood,  and  then  they  who  were  before  could 
not  come  back.  We  broke  into  the  lane  just  in  the 
middle  of  them,  and  by  that  means  divided  them ; 
and  facing  to  the  left,  charged  the  rear.  First  our 
dismounted  men,  which  were  near  fifty,  lined  the  edge 
of  the  wood,  and  fired  with  their  carabines  upon  those 
which  were  before,  so  warmly,  that  they  put  them  into 
a  great  disorder.  Meanwhile,  fifty  more  of  our  horse 
from  the  farther  part  of  the  wood  showed  themselves 
in  the  lane  upon  their  front ;  this  put  them  of  the 
foremost  party  into  a  great  perplexity,  and  they  began 
to  face  about,  to  fall  upon  us  who  were  engaged  in 
the  rear ;  but  their  facing  about  in  a  lane  where  there 
was  no  room  to  wheel,  and  [as  ?]  one  who  understands 
the  manner  of  wheeling  a  troop  of  horse  must  imagine, 
put  them  into  a  great  disorder.  Our  party  in  the 
head  of  the  lane  taking  the  advantage  of  this  mistake 


224  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

of  the  enemy,  charged  in  upon  them,  and  routed  them, 
entirely.  Some  found  means  to  break  into  the  en- 
closures on  the  other  side  of  the  land,  and  get  away. 
About  thirty  were  killed,  and  about  twenty-five  made 
prisoners,  and  forty  very  good  horses  were  taken ;  all 
this  while  not  a  man  of  ours  was  lost,  and  not  above 
seven  or  eight  wounded.  Those  in  the  rear  behaved 
themselves  better ;  for  they  stood  our  charge  with  a 
great  deal  of  resolution,  and  all  we  could  do  could 
not  break  them ;  but  at  last  our  men,  w^ho  had  fired 
on  foot  through  the  hedges  at  the  other  party,  coming 
to  do  the  like  here,  there  was  no  standing  it  any 
longer.  The  rear  of  them  faced  about,  and  retreated 
out  of  the  lane,  and  drew  up  in  the  open  field  to 
receive  and  rally  their  fellows.  We  killed  about 
seventeen  of  them,  and  followed  them  to  the  end  of 
the  lane,  but  had  no  mind  to  have  any  more  fighting 
than  needs  must ;  our  condition  at  that  time  not 
making  it  proper,  the  towns  round  us  being  all  in  the 
enemy's  hands,  and  the  country  but  indifferently 
pleased  with  us ;  however,  we  stood  facing  them  till 
they  thought  fit  to  march  away.  Thus  we  were  sup- 
plied with  horses  enough  to  remount  our  men,  and 
pursued  our  first  design  of  getting  into  Lancashire, 
As  for  our  prisoners,  we  let  them  off  on  foot. 

But  the  country  being  by  this  time  alarmed,  and 
the  rout  of  our  army  everywhere  known,  we  foresaw 
abundance   of   difficulties    before   us ;    we   were    not 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  225 

strong  enough  to  venture  into  any  great  towns,  and 
we  were  too  many  to  be  concealed  in  small  ones. 
Upon  this  we  resolved  to  halt  in  a  great  wood,  about 
three  miles  beyond  the  place  where  we  had  the  last 
skirmish,  and  sent  out  scouts  to  discover  the  country, 
and  learn  what  they  could,  either  of  the  enemy  or  of 
our  friends. 

Anybody  may  suppose  we  had  but  indifferent 
quarters  here,  either  for  ourselves  or  for  our  horses ; 
but,  however,  we  made  shift  to  lie  here  two  days  and 
one  night.  In  the  interim  I  took  upon  me,  with  two 
more,  to  go  to  Leeds  to  learn  some  news ;  we  were 
disguised  like  country  ploughmen  ;  the  clothes  we  got 
at  a  farmer's  house,  which  for  that  particular  occasion 
we  plundered ;  and  I  cannot  say  no  blood  was  shed 
in  a  manner  too  rash,  and  which  I  could  not  have 
done  at  another  time ;  but  our  case  was  desperate, 
and  the  people  too  surly,  and  shot  at  us  out  of  the 
window,  wounded  one  man,  and  shot  a  horse,  which 

:  we  counted  as  great  a  loss  to  us  as  a  man,  for  our 
safety   depended    upon   our    horses.      Here   we    got 

:  clothes  of  all  sorts,  enough  for  both  sexes ;  and  thus, 
dressing  myself  up  a  la  paisant,  with  a  white  cap  on 

i  my  head,  and  a  fork  on  my  shoulder,  and  one  of  my 

i  comrades  in  the  farmer's  wife's  russet  gown  and 
petticoat,  like  a  wom^n,  the  other  with  an  old  crutch 
like  a  lame  man,  and  all  mounted  on  such  horses  as 
we  had  taken  the  day  before  from  the  country,  away 

Q 


226  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

we  go  to  Leeds  by  three  several  ways,  and  agreed  to 
meet  upon  the  bridge.  My  pretended  countrywoman 
acted  her  part  to  the  hfe,  though  the  party  was  a 
gentleman  of  good  quality  of  the  Earl  of  Worcester's 
family ;  and  the  cripple  did  as  well  as  he ;  but  I 
thought  myself  very  awkward  in  my  dress,  which 
made  me  very  shy,  especially  amorig  the  soldiers. 
We  passed  their  sentinels  and  guards  at  Leeds  un-  j 
observed,  and  put  up  our  horses  at  several  houses  in 
the  town,  from  whence  we  went  up  and  down  to 
make  our  remarks.  My  cripple  was  the  fittest  to  go 
among  the  soldiers,  because  there  was  less  danger  of 
being  pressed.  There  he  informed  himself  of  the 
matters  of  war,  particularly  that  the  enemy  sat  down 
again  to  the  siege  of  York ;  that  flying  parties  were  in 
pursuit  of  the  cavaliers ;  and  there  he  heard  that  five 
hundred  horse  of  the  Lord  Manchester's  men  had 
followed  a  party  of  cavaliers  over  Bramham-moor ; 
and  that,  entering  a  lane,  the  cavaliers,  who  were  a 
thousand  strong,  fell  upon  them,  and  killed  them  all 
but  about  fifty.  This,  though  it  was  a  lie,  was  very 
pleasant  to  us  to  hear,  knowing  it  was  our  party,  ' 
because  of  the  other  part  of  the  story,  which  was 
thus :  that  the  cavaliers  had  taken  possession  of  such 
a  wood  where  they  rallied  all  the  troops  of  their  fly- 
ing army  \  that  they  had  plundered  the  country  as 
they  came,  taking  all  the  good  horses  they  could  get; 
that  they  had  plundered  Goodman  Thompson's  house, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  227 

which  was  the  farmer  I  mentioned,  and  killed  man, 
woman,  and  child ;  and  that  they  were  about  two 
thousand  strong. 

My  other  friend  in  woman's  clothes  got  among 
the  good  wives  at  an  inn,  where  she  set  up  her  horse, 
and  there  she  heard  the  same  sad  and  dreadful  tid- 
ings ;  and  that  this  party  was  so  strong  none  of  the 
neighbouring  garrisons  durst  stir  out ;  but  that  they 
had  sent  expresses  to  York  for  a  party  of  horse  to 
come  to  their  assistance. 

I  walked  up  and  down  the  town,  but  fancied  my- 
self so  ill-disguised,  and  so  easy  to  be  known,  that  I 
cared  not  to  talk  with  anybody.  We  met  at  the 
Dridge  exactly  at  our  time,  and  compared  our  intelli- 
gence, found  it  answered  our  end  of  coming,  and  that 
vve  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  get  back  to  our  men ; 
out  my  cripple  told  me  he  would  not  stir  till  he 
30ught  some  victuals,  so  away  he  hops  with  his 
:rutch,  and  buys  four  or  live  great  pieces  of  bacon,  as 
nany  of  hung  beef,  and  two  or  three  loaves ;  and, 
)orrowing  a  sack  at  the  inn  (which  I  suppose  he 
|iever  restored),  he  loads  his  horse,  and,  getting  a 
arge  leather  bottle,  he  filled  that  of  aqua  vitse  instead 
if  small  beer ;  my  woman  comrade  did  the  hke.  I 
/as  uneasy  in  my  mind,  and  took  no  care  but  to  get 
ut  of  the  town;  however^  we  all  came  off  well, 
nough ;  but  it  was  well  for  me  that  I  had  no  pro- 
isions   with   me,   as   you   will    hear   presently.      We 


228  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

came,  as  I  said,  into  the  town  by  several  ways,  and  so 
we  went  out ;  but  about  three  miles  from  the  town 
we  met  again  exactly  where  we  had  agreed.  I  being 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  rest,  I  met  three 
country  fellows  on  horseback ;  one  had  a  long  pole 
on  his  shoulder,  another  a  fork,  the  third  no  weapon 
at  all,  that  I  saw ;  I  gave  them  the  road  very  orderly, 
being  habited  like  one  of  their  brethren  ;  but  one  of 
them  stopping  short  at  me,  and  looking  earnestly, 
calls  out,  '  Hark  thee,  friend,'  says  he,  in  a  broad 
north-country  tone,  '  whar  hast  thou  thilk  horse  ?  '  I 
must  confess  I  was  in  the  utmost  confusion  at  the 
question,  neither  being  able  to  answer  the  question, 
nor  to  speak  in  his  tone ;  so  I  made  as  if  I  did  not 
hear  him,  and  went  on.  '  Na,  but  ye's  not  gang  soa,' 
says  the  boor,  and  comes  up  to  me,  and  takes  hold  of 
the  horse's  bridle  to  stop  me ;  at  which,  vexed  at 
heart  that  I  could  not  tell  how  to  talk  to  him,  I 
reached  him  a  great  knock  on  the  pate  with  my  fork, 
and  fetched  him  off  his  horse,  and  then  began  to 
mend  my  pace.  The  other  clowns,  though  it  seems 
they  knew  not  what  the  fellow  wanted,  pursued  me, 
and,  finding  they  had  better  heels  than  I,  I  saw  there 
was  no  remedy  but  •  to  make  use  of  my  hands,  and 
faced  about.  The  first  that  came  up  with  me  was  he 
that  had  no  weapons,  so  I  thought  I  might  parley, 
with  him ;  and,  speaking  as  country-like  as  I  could,  I 
asked   him  what   he  wanted?     'Thou'st   knaw   that 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  229 

soon,'  says  Yorkshire,  'and  I'se  but  come  at  thee.' 
'Then  keep  awa',  man,'  said  I,  'or  I'se  brain  thee.' 
By  this  time  the  third  man  came  up,  and  the  parley 
ended ;  for  he  gave  me  no  words,  but  laid  at  me  with 
his  long  pole,  and  that  with  such  fury  that  I  began 
to  be  doubtful  of  him.  I  was  loath  to  shoot  the 
fellow,  though  I  had  pistols  under  my  grey  frock,  as 
well  for  that  the  noise  of  a  pistol  might  bring  more 
people  in,  the  village  being  in  our  rear,  and  also 
because  I  could  not  imagine  what  the  fellow  meant, 
or  would  have ;  but  at  last,  finding  he  would  be  too 
many  for  me  with  that  long  weapon,  and  a  hardy 
strong  fellow,  I  threw  myself  off  my  horse,  and,  run- 
ning in  with  him,  stabbed  my  fork  into  his  horse ;  the 
horse,  being  wounded,  staggered  awhile,  and  then  fell 
down,  and  the  booby  had  not  the  sense  to  get  down 
in  time,  but  fell  with  him  ;  upon  which,  giving  him  a 
knock  or  two  with  my  fork,  I  secured  him.  The 
other,  by  this  time,  had  furnished  himself  with  a  great 
stick  out  of  a  hedge,  and,  before  I  was  disengaged 
from  the  last  fellow,  gave  me  two  such  blows,  that  if 
[the  last  had  not  missed  my  head,  and  hit  me  on  the 
shoulder,  I  had  ended  the  fight  and  my  life  together. 
lit  was  time  to  look  about  me  now,  for  this  was  a 
[madman ;  I  defended  myself  with  my  fork,  -but  it 
would  not  do  ;  at  last,  in  short,  I  was  forced  to  pistol 
him,  and  get  on  horseback  again,  and,  with  all  the 
speed  I  could  make,  get  away  to  the  wood  to  our  men. 


230  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

If  my  two  fellow  spies  had  not  been  behind,  I  had 
never  known  what  was  the  meaning  of  this  quarrel  of 
the  three  countrymen,  but  my  cripple  had  all  the 
particulars  ;  for  he  being  behind  us,  as  I  have  already 
observed,  when  he  came  up  to  the  first  fellow,  who 
began  the  fray,  he  found  him  beginning  to  come  to 
himself;  so  he  gets  off,  and  pretends  to  help  him, 
and  sets  him  upon  his  breech,  and,  being  a  very 
merry  fellow,  talked  to  him,  '  Well,  and  what's  the 
matter  now  ? '  says  he  to  him.  '  Ah,  wae's  me,'  says 
the  fellow,  Tse  killed  !'  'Not  quite,  mon,'  says  the 
cripple.  'O  that's  a  fause  thief,'  says  he,  and  thus 
they  parleyed.  My  cripple  got  him  on  his  feet,  and 
gave  him  a  dram  of  his  aqua  vitae  bottle,  and  made 
much  of  him,  in  order  to  know  what  was  the  occasion 
>of  the  quarrel.  Our  disguised  woman  pitied  the 
fellow  too,  and  together  they  set  him  up  again  upon 
his  horse,  and  then  he  told  them  that  that  fellow  was 
got  upon  one  of  his  brother's  horses  who  lived  at 
Wetherby;  they  said  the  cavaliers  stole  him,  but  it 
was  like  such  rogues  (no  mischief  could  be  done  in 
the  country,  but  it  was  the  poor  cavaliers  must  bear 
the  blame),  and  the  like ;  and  thus  they  jogged  on 
till  they  came  to  the  place  where  the  other  two  lay. 
The  first  fellow  they  assisted  as  they  had  done  the 
other,  and  gave  him  a  dram  out  of  the  leather  bottle  ;  • 
but  the  last  fellow  was  past  their  care ;  so  they  came 
away.     For  when   they  understood   that   it  was   my 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  231 

horse  they  claimed,  they  began  to  be  afraid  that  their 
own  horses  might  be  known  too,  and  then  they  had 
been  betrayed  in  a  worse  pickle  than  I,  and  must 
have  been  forced  to  have  done  some  mischief  or 
other  to  have  got  away. 

I  had  sent  out  two  troopers  to  fetch  them  off,  if 
there  was  any  occasion ;  but  their  stay  was  not  long, 
and  the  two  troopers  saw  them  at  a  distance  coming 
towards  us,  so  they  returned. 

I  had  enough  of  going  for  a  spy,  and  my  com- 
panions had  enough  of  staying  in  the  wood  ;  for  other 
inteUigences  agreed  with  ours,  and  all  concurred  in 
this,  that  it  was  time  to  be  going :  however,  this  use 
we  made  of  it,  that,  while  the  country  thought  us  so 
\  strong,  we  were  in  the  less  danger  of  being  attacked, 
though  in  the  more  of  being  observed ;  but  all  this 
while  we  heard  nothing  of  our  friends,  till  the  next 
day.  We  then  heard  Prince  Rupert,  with  about  a 
thousand  horse,  was  at  Skipton,  and  from  thence 
marched  away  to  Westmoreland. 

We  concluded  now  we  had  two  or  three  days' 
I  time  good ;  for,  since  messengers  were  sent  to  York 
for  a  party  to  suppress  us,  we  must  have  at  least  two 
days'  march  of  them,  and  therefore  all  concluded  we 
were  to  make  the  best  of  our  way.  Early  in  the 
morning,  therefore,  we  decamped  from  those  dull 
quarters ;  and  as  we  marched  through  a  village  we 
found   the  people  very  civil   to  us,  and   the  women 


232  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

cried  out,  'God  bless  them,  it  is  a  pity  the  round- 
heads should  make  such  work  with  such  brave  men,' 
and  the  like.  Finding  we  were  among  our  friends, 
we  resolved  to  halt  a  little  and  refresh  ourselves ; 
and,  indeed,  the  people  were  very  kind  to  us,  gave  us 
victuals  and  drink,  and  took  care  of  our  horses.  It 
happened  to  be  my  lot  to  stop  at  a  house  where  the 
good  woman  took  a  great  deal  of  pains  to  provide  for 
us  ;  but  I  observed  the  good  man  walked  about  with 
a  cap  upon  his  head,  and  very  much  out  of  order.  I 
took  no  great  notice  of  it,  being  very  sleepy,  and  hav- 
ing asked  my  landlady  to  let  me  have  a  bed,  I  lay 
down  and  slept  heartily  :  when  I  waked  I  found  my 
landlord  on  another  bed,  groaning  very  heavily. 

When  I  came  downstairs  I  found  my  cripple  talk- 
ing with  my  landlady;  he  was  now  out  of  his  disguise, 
but  we  called  him  cripple  still ;  and  the  other,  who 
put  on  the  woman's  clothes,  we  called  Goody 
Thompson.  As  soon  as  he  saw  me,  he  called  me 
out;  'Do  you  know,'  says  he,  'the  man  of  the  house 
you  are  quartered  in  ? '  '  No,  not  I,'  says  I.  '  No, 
so  I  believe,  nor  they  you,'  says  he ;  'if  they  did,  the 
good  wife  would  not  have  made  you  a  posset,  and 
fetched  a  white  loaf  for  you.'  '  What  do  you  mean  ?  ' 
says  I.  '  Have  you  seen  the  man  ? '  says  he.  '  Seen 
him,'  says  I,  '  yes,  and  heard  him  too ;  the  man  is 
sick,  and  groans  so  heavily,'  says  I,  'that  I  could  not 
lie  upon  the  bed  any  longer  for  him.'      'Why,  this  is 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  233 

the  poor  man,'  says  he,  '  that  you  knocked  down  with 
your  fork  yesterday,  and  I  have  had  all  the  story  out 
yonder  at  the  next  door.'  I  confess  it  grieved  me  to 
have  been  forced  to  treat  one  so  roughly  who  was  one 
of  our  friends,  but  to  make  some  amends  we  con- 
trived to  give  the  poor  man  his  brotlier's  horse  ;  and 
my  cripple  told  him  a  formal  story,  that  he  believed 
the  horse  was  taken  away  from  the  fellow  by  some  of 
our  men  ;  and,  if  he  knew  him  'fegain,  if  it  was  his 
friend's  horse,  he  should  have  him.  The  man  came 
down  upon  the  news,  and  I  caused  six  or  seven 
horses,  which  were  taken  at  the  same  time,  to  be 
shown  him ;  he  immediately  chose  the  right ;  so  I 
gave  him  the  horse,  and  we  pretended  a  great  deal  of 
sorrow  for  the  man's  hurt ;  and  that  we  had  not 
knocked  the  fellow  on  the  head  as  well  as  took  away 
the  horse.  The  man  was  so  overjoyed  at  the  revenge 
he  thought  was  taken  on  the  fellow,  that  we  heard  him 
groan  no  more.  We  ventured  to  stay  all  day  at  this 
town,  and  the  next  night,  and  got  guides  to  lead  us 
to  Blackstone-Edge,  a  ridge  of  mountains  which  parts 
this  side  of  Yorkshire  from  Lancashire.  Early  in  the 
morning  we  marched,  and  kept  our  scouts  very  care- 
fully out  every  way,  who  brought  us  no  news  for  this 
day  :  we  kept  on  all  night,  and  made  our  horses  do 
penance  for  that  little  rest  they  had,  and  the  next 
morning  we  passed  the  hills,  and  got  into  Lancashire, 
to  a  town  called  Littleborough,  and  from  thence  to 


234  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

Rochdale,  a  little  market-town.  And  now  we  thought 
ourselves  safe  as  to  the  pursuit  of  enemies  from  the 
side  of  York ;  our  design  was  to  get  to  Bolton,  but 
all  the  country  was  full  of  the  enemy  in  flying  parties, 
and  how  to  get  to  Bolton  we  knew  not.  At  last  we 
resolved  to  send  a  messenger  to  Bolton ;  but  he  came 
back  and  told  us  he  had,  with  lurking  and  hiding, 
tried  all  the  ways  that  he  thought  possible,  but  to  no 
purpose ;  for  he  could  not  get  into  the  town.  We 
sent  another,  and  he  never  returned ;  and  some  time 
after  we  understood  he  was  taken  by  the  enemy.  At 
last  one  got  into  the  town,  but  brought  us  word  they 
were  tired  out  with  constant  alarms,  had  been  straitly 
blocked  up,  and  every  day  expected  a  siege,  and 
therefore  advised  us  either  to  go  northward,  where 
Prince  Rupert  and  the  Lord  Goring  ranged  at  liberty ; 
or  to  get  over  Warrington  bridge,  and  so  secure  our 
retreat  to  Chester.  This  double  direction  divided 
our  opinions ;  I  was  for  getting  into  Chester,  both  to 
recruit  myself  with  horses  and  with  money,  both 
which  I  wanted,  and  to  get  refreshment,  which  we  all 
wanted ;  but  the  major  part  of  our  men  were  for  the 
north.  First,  they  said,  there  was  their  general,  and 
it  was  their  duty  to  the  cause,  and  the  king's  interest 
obliged  us,  to  go  w^here  we  could  do  best  service  ;  and 
there  were  their  friends,  and  every  man  might  hear 
some  news  of  his  own  regiment,  for  we  belonged  to 
several  regiments;  besides,  all  the  towns  to  the  left 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  235 

of  us  were  possessed  by  Sir  William  Brereton ; 
Warrington  and  Northwich  garrisoned  by  the  enemy, 
and  a  strong  party  at  Manchester ;  so  that  it  was  very 
likely  we  should  be  beaten  and  dispersed  before  we 
could  get  to  Chester.  These  reasons,  and  especially 
the  last,  determined  us  for  the  north,  and  we  had  re- 
solved to  march  the  next  morning,  when  other  intelli- 
gence brought  us  to  more  speedy  resolutions.  We 
kept  our  scouts  continually  abroad,  to  bring  us  intelli- 
gence of  the  enemy,  whom  we  expected  on  our  backs, 
and  also  to  keep  an  eye  upon  the  country  ;  for,  as  we 
lived  upon  them  something  at  large,  they  were  ready 
enough  to  do  us  any  ill  turn,  as  it  lay  in  their  power. 
The  first  messenger  that  came  to  us  was  from  our 
friends  at  Bolton,  to  inform  us  that  ^hey  were  prepar- 
ing at  Manchester  to  attack  us.  One  of  our  parties 
had  been  as  far  as  Stockport,  on  the  edge  of  Cheshire, 
and  was  pursued  by  a  party  of  the  enemy,  but  got 
off  by  the  help  of  the  night.  Thus  all  things  looking 
black  to  the  south,  we  had  resolved  to  march  north- 
ward in  the  morning,  when  one  of  our  scouts  from 
the  side  of  Manchester  assured  us  Sir  Thomas 
Middleton,  with  some  of  the  parliament  forces,  and 
the  country  troops,  making  above  twelve  hundred 
men,  were  on  their  march  to  attack  us,  and  would 
certainly  beat  up  our  quarters  that  night.  Upon  this 
advice  we  resolved  to  be  gone ;  and  getting  all  things 
in  readiness,  we   began   to   march  about  two  hours 


236  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

before  night ;  and  having  gotten  a  trusty  fellow  for  a 
guide,  a  fellow  that  we  found  was  a  friend  to  our  side, 
he  put  a  project  into  my  head  which  saved  us  all  for 
that  time ;  and  that  was,  to  give  out  in  the  village 
that  we  were  marched  back  to  Yorkshire,  resolving  to 
get  into  Pontefract  Castle ;  and,  accordingly,  he  leads 
us  out  of  the  town  the  same  way  we  came  in ;  and 
taking  a  boy  with  him,  he  sends  the  boy  back  just  at 
night,  and  bade  him  say  he  saw  us  go  up  the  hills  at 
Blackstone-Edge ;  and  it  happened  very  well ;  for  this 
party- were  so  sure  of  us  that  they  had  placed  four 
hundred  men  on  the  road  to  the  northward,  to  inter- 
cept our  retreat  that  way,  and  had  left  no  way  for  us, 
as  they  thought,  to  get  away,  but  back  again. 

About  ten  o'clock  at  night  they  assaulted  our 
quarters,  but  found  we  were  gone ;  and  being  in- 
formed which  way,  they  followed  upon  the  spur,  and 
travelling  all  night,  being  moonlight,  they  found 
themselves  the  next  day  about  fifteen  miles  east,  just 
out  of  their  way ;  for  we  had,  by  the  help  of  our 
guide,  turned  short  at  the  foot  of  the  hills,  and 
through  blind  untrodden  paths,  and  with  difficulty 
enough,  by  noon  the  next  day,  had  reached  almost 
twenty-five  miles  north,  near  a  town  called  Clithero. 
Here  we  halted  in  the  open  field,  and  sent  out  our 
people  to  see  how  things  were  in .  the  country.  This 
part  of  the  country,  almost  unpassable,  and  walled 
round  with  hills,  was  indifferent  quiet ;   and  we  got 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  237 

some  refreshment  for  ourselves,  but  very  little  horse 
meat,  and  so  went  on  ;  but  we  had  not  marched  far 
before  we  found  ourselves  discovered ;  and  the  four 
hundred  horse  sent  to  lie  in  wait  for  us  as  before, 
having  understood  which  way  we  went,  followed  us 
hard ;  and,  by  letters  to  some  of  their  friends  at 
Preston,  we  found  we  were  beset  again.  Our  guide 
began  now  to  be  out  of  his  knowledge ;  and  our 
scouts  brought  us  word  the  enemy's  horse  was  posted 
before  us ;  and  we  knew  they  were  in  our  rear.  In 
this  exigence  we  resolved  to  divide  our  small  body, 
and  so  amusing  them,  at  least  one  might  get  off  if 
the  other  miscarried.  I  took  about  eighty  horse  with 
me,  among  which  were  all  that  I  had  of  my  own 
regiment,  amounting  to  above  thirty-two,  and  took 
the  hills  towards  Yorkshire.  Here  we  met  with  such 
unpassable  hills,  vast  moors,  rocks,  and  stony  ways, 
as  lamed  all  our  horses,  and  tired  our  men ;  and 
sometimes  I  was  ready  to  think  we  should  never  be 
able  to  get  over  them,  till  our  horses  failing,  and 
jack-boots  being  but  indifferent  things  to  travel  in,  we 
might  be  starved  before  w6  should  find  any  road  or 
towns,  for  guide  we  had  none,  but  a  boy  who  knew 
but  little,  and  would  cry  when  we  asked  him  any 
questions.  I  believe  neither  men  nor  horses  ever 
passed  in  some  places  where  we  went,  and  for  twenty 
hours  we  saw  not  a  town  nor  a  house,  excepting 
sometimes  from  the  top  of  the  mountains,  at  a  vast 


238  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

distance.  I  am  persuaded  we  might  have  encamped 
here,  if  we  had  had  provisions,  till  the  war  had  been 
over,  and  have  met  with  no  disturbance ;  and  I  have 
often  wondered  since  how  we  got  into  such  horrible 
places,  as  much  as  how  we  got  out.  That  which  was 
worse  to  us  than  all  the  rest  was,  that  we  knew  not 
where  we  were  going,  nor  what  part  of  the  country 
we  should  come  into,  when  we  came  out  of  those 
desolate  crags.  At  last,  after  a  terrible  fatigue,  we 
began  to  see  the  western  parts  of  Yorkshire,  some  few 
villages,  and  the  country  at  a  distance  looked  a  little 
like  England ;  for  I  thought  before  it  looked  hke  old 
Brennus's  hill,  which  the  Grisons  call  the  grandfather 
of  the  Alps.  We  got  some  relief  in  the  villages, 
which  indeed  some  of  us  had  so  much  need  of  that 
they  were  hardly  able  to  sit  their  horses,  and  others 
were  forced  to  help  them  off,  they  were  so  faint.  I 
never  felt  so  much  of  the  power  of  hunger  in  my  life, 
for  having  not  eaten  in  thirty  hours,  I  was  as  ravenous 
as  a  hound  ;  and  if  I  had  had  a  piece  of  horseflesh,  I 
believe  I  should  not  have  had  patience  to  have  stayed 
dressing  it,  but  have  fallen  upon  it  raw,  and  have 
eaten  it  as  greedily  as  a  Tartar. 

However,  I  ate  very  cautiously,  having  often  seen 
the  danger  of  men's  eating  heartily  after  long  fasting. 
Our  next  care  was  to  inquire  our  way.  Halifax,  they 
told  us,  was  on  our  right ;  there  we  durst  not  think 
of  going ;  Skipton  was  before  us,  and  there  w^e  knew 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  239 

not  how  it  was ;  for  a  body  of  three  thousand  horse, 
sent  out  by  the  enemy  in  pursuit  of  Prince  Rupert, 
had  been  there  but  two  days  before,  and  the  country 
people  could  not  tell  us  whether  they  were  gone  or 
no  ;  and  Manchester's  horse,  which  were  sent  out  after 
our  party,  were  then  at  Halifax,  in  quest  of  us,  and 
afterwards  marched  into  Cheshire.  In  this  distress 
we  would  have  hired  a  guide,  but  none  of  the  country 
people  would  go  with  us ;  for  the  roundheads  would 
hang  them,  they  said,  when  they  came  there.  Upon 
this  I  called  a  fellow  to  me,  '  Hark  ye  friend,'  says  I, 
'  dost  thee  know  the  way  so  as  to  bring  us  into  West- 
moreland, and  not  keep  the  great  road  from  York  ? ' 
'  Ay  marry,'  says  he,  '  I  ken  the  ways  weel  enou.' 
'  And  you  would  go  and  guide  us,'  said  I,  '  but  that 
you  are  afraid  the  roundheads  will  hang  you  ? '  '  In- 
deed would  I,'  says  the  fellow.  '  Why  then,'  says  I, 
'  thou  hadst  as  good  be  hanged  by  a  roundhead  as  a 
cavalier ;  for,  if  thou  will  not  go,  I'll  hang  thee  just 
now.'  '  Na,  and  ye  serve  me  soa,'  says  the  fellow, 
'  I'se  ene  gang  with  ye ;  for  I  care  not  for  hanging ; 
and  ye'll  get  me  a  good  horse,  I'se  gang  and  be  one 
of  ye,  for  I'll  nere  come  heame  more.'  This  pleased 
us  still  better,  and  we  mounted  the  fellow,  for  three 
of  our  men  died  that  night  with  the  extreme  fatigue 
of  the  last  service. 

Next  morning,  when  our  new  trooper  was  mounted 
and  clothed,  we  hardly  knew  him  ;  and  this  fellow  led 


240  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

us  by  such  ways,  such  wildernesses,  and  yet  with  such 
prudence,  keeping  the  hills  to  the  left,  that  we  might 
have  the  villages  to  refresh  ourselves,  that  without 
him  we  had  certainly  either  perished  in  those  moun- 
tains or  fallen  into  the  enemy's  hands.  We  passed 
the  great  road  from  York  so  critically  as  to  time,  that 
from  one  of  the  hills  he  showed  us  a  party  of  the 
enemy's  horse  who  were  then  marching  into  West- 
moreland. We  lay  still  that  day,  finding  we  were  not 
discovered  by  them ;  and  our  guide  proved  the  best 
scout  that  we  could  have  had ;  for  he  would  go  out 
ten  miles  at  a  time,  and  bring  us  in  all  the  news  of 
the  country.  Here  he  brought  us  word  that  York 
was  surrendered  upon  articles,  and  that  Newcastle, 
which  had  been  surprised  by  the  king's  party,  was 
besieged  by  another  army  of  Scots,  advanced  to  help 
their  brethren. 

Along  the  edges  of  those  vast  mountains  we  past, 
with  the  help  of  our  guide,  till  we  came  into  the 
forest  of  Swale ;  and  finding  ourselves  perfectly  con- 
cealed here,  for  no  soldier  had  ever  been  here  all  the 
war,  nor  perhaps  would  not,  if  it  had  lasted  seven 
years,  we  thought  we  wanted  a  few  days'  rest,  at  least 
for  our  horses,  so  we  resolved  to  halt,  and  while  we 
did  so,  we  made  some  disguises,  and  sent  out  some 
spies  into  the  country ;  but,  as  here  were  no  great 
towns,  nor  no  post  road,  we  got  very  little  intelligence. 
We  rested  four  days,  and  then  marched  again  ;  and, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  241 

indeed,  having  no  great  stock  of  money  about  us,  and 
not  very  free  of  that  we  had,  four  days  was  enough 
for  those  poor  places  to  be  able  to  maintain  us. 

We  thought  ourselves  pretty  secure  now ;  but  our 
chief  care  was  how  to  get  over  those  terrible  moun- 
tains ;  for,  having  passed  the  great  road  that  leads 
from  York  to  Lancaster,  the  crags,  the  farther  north- 
ward we  looked,  looked  still  the  worse,  and  our 
business  was  all  on  the  other  side.  Our  guide  told 
us  he  would  bring  us  out  if  we  would  have  patience, 
which  we  were  obliged  to,  and  kept  on  this  slow 
march  till  he  brought  us  to  Stanhope,  in  the  county 
of  Durham,  where  some  of  Goring's  horse,  and  two 
regiments  of  foot  had  their  quarters.  This  was  nine- 
teen days  from  the  battle  of  Marston-moor.  The 
prince,  who  was  then  at  Kendal,  in  Westmoreland, 
and  who  had  given  me  over  as  lost,  when  he  had 
news  of  our  arrival  sent  an  express  to  me  to  meet 
him  at  Appleby.  I  went  thither  accordingly,  and 
gave  him  an  account  of  our  journey ;  and  there  I 
heard  the  short  history  of  the  other  part  of  our  men, 
whom  we  parted  from  in  Lancashire.  They  made 
the  best  of  their  way  north.  They  had  two  resolute 
gentlemen  who  commanded ;  and  being  so  closely 
pursued  by  the  enemy  that  they  found  themselves 
under  the  necessity  of  fighting,  they  halted,  and  faced 
about,  expecting  the  charge.  The  boldness  of  the 
action  made  the  officer  wlio  led  the  enemy's  horse 

R 


242  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

(which  it  seems  were  the  county  horse  only),  afraid  of 
them ;  which  they  perceiving,  taking  the  advantage  of 
his  fears,  bravely  advance,  and  charge  them ;  and, 
though  they  were  above  two  hundred  horse,  they 
routed  them,  killed  about  thirty  or  forty,  got  some 
horses  and  some  money,  and  pushed  on  their  march 
night  and  day ;  but  coming  near  Lancaster  they  were 
so  waylaid  and  pursued  that  they  agreed  to  separate, 
and  shift  every  man  for  himself;  many  of  them  fell 
into  the  enemy's  hands,  some  were  killed  attempting 
to  pass  through  the  river  Lune,  some  went  back 
again,  six  or  seven  got  to  Bolton,  and  about  eighteen 
got  safe  to  Prince  Rupert. 


IV.— 'COLONEL  JACK' 

{The  memory  of  Colonel  Jack  is  preserved  by  one 
famous  and  admirable  passage  at  the  beginning,  describ- 
ing the  Colonel's  experiences  as  a  youthful  thief  which 
will  be  presently  given  in  full.    I  have  selected  two  others 
rom  later  parts  of  the  book  because  they  illustrate  very 
well  the  curiously  unheroic  view  of  life  which  distinguished 
\pefoe,  and  which  ivas,  I  think,  more  common  among 
^he  English  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries 
hqn  it  sonietimes  suits  us  to  acknowledge.     On  the  whole 
'he  novel  is  a  sort  of  compound  of  the  theines  of  Moll 
landers  and  of  the  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  [for  Jack, 
\hough  he  cuts  so  bad  a  figure  in  the  second  of  our 
xtracts,  afterwards  served  with  credit  abroad),  and  it 
eems  to  me  as  a  whole  inferior  to  both.      There  can, 
lowever,  be  no  doubt  about  the  following  account  of 
^ack^s  initiation  into  pilfering.) 

The  subtle  devil,  never  absent  from  his  business, 
lut  ready  at  all  occasions  to  encourage  his  servants, 


244  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

removed  all  these  difficulties,  and  brought  him  into 
an  intimacy  with  one  of  the  most  exquisite  divers,  or 
pickpockets,  in  the  town ;  and  this,  our  intimacy, 
was  of  no  less  a  kind  than  that,  as  I  had  an  inclina- 
tion to  be  as  wicked  as  any  of  them,  he  was  for 
taking  care  that  I  should  not  be  disappointed. 

He  was  above  the  little  fellows  who  went  about 
stealing  trifles  and  baubles  in  Bartholomew  fair,  and 
ran  the  risk  of  being  mobbed  for  three  or  four  shillings. 
His  aim  was  at  higher  things,  even  at  no  less  than 
considerable  sums  of  money,  and  bills  for  more. 

He  solicited  me  earnestly  to  go  and  take  a  walk 
with  him  as  above,  adding,  that  after  he  had  shown 
me  my  trade  a  little,  he  would  let  me  be  as  wicked 
as  I  would ;  that  is,  as  he  expressed  it,  that  after  he 
had  made  me  capable,  I  should  set  up  for  myself,  if 
I  pleased,  and  he  would  only  wish  me  good  luck. 

Accordingly,  as  Major  Jack  went  with  his  gentle- 
man, only  to  see  the  manner,  and  receive  the  purchase, 
and  yet  come  in  for  a  share  \  so  he  told  me  if  he  had 
success  I  should  have  my  share  as  much  as  if  I  had 
been  principal;  and  this  he  assured  me  was  a  custom 
of  the  trade,  in  order  to  encourage  young  beginners, 
and  bring  them  into  the  trade  with  courage,  for  that 
nothing  was  to  be  done  if  a  man  had  not  the  heart  of 
the  lion. 

I  hesitated  at  the  matter  a  great  while,  objecting 
the  hazard,  and  telling  the  story  of  Captain  Jack,  my 


Colonel  Jack  245 

elder  brother,  as  I  might  call  him.  '  Well,  colonel,' 
says  he,  '  I  find  you  are  faint-hearted,  and  to  be  faint- 
.hearted  is  indeed  to  be  unfit  for  our  trade,  for  nothing 
but  a  bold  heart  can  go  through  stitch  with  this 
work ;  but,  however,  as  there  is  nothing  for  you  to 
do,  so  there  is  no  risk  for  you  to  run  in  these  things 
the  first  time.  If  I  am  taken,'  says  he,  '  you  have 
nothing  to  do  in  it,  they  will  let  you  go  free ;  for  it 
shall  be  easily  made  appear  that  whatever  I  have 
done  you  had  no  hand  in  it.' JU- 

Upon  those  persuasions  I  ventured  out  with  him ; 

but  I  soon  found  that  my  new  friend  was  a  thief  of 

quality,  and  a  pickpocket  above  the  ordinary  rank, 

and  that  aimed  higher  abundantly  than  my  brother 

Jack.      He  was  a  bigger  boy  than  I  a  great  deal ;  for 

though   I  was  now  near  fifteen  years  old,  I  was  not 

big  of  my  age,  and  as  to  the  nature  of  the  thing,  I 

was  perfectly  a  stranger  to  it.      I  knew  indeed  what 

at  first  I  did  not,  for  it  was  a  good  while  before  I 

understood   the   thing   as  an  offence.      I  looked  on 

picking  pockets  as  a  trade,  and  thought  I  was  to  go 

1  apprentice  to   it.      It   is   true,   this  was  when  I  was 

I  young  in  the  society,  as  well  as  younger  in  years,  but 

I  even  now   I    understood   it   to   be  only  a  thing   for 

i  which,  if  we  were  catched,  we  ran  the  risk  of  being 

ducked  or  pumped,  which  we  call  soaking,  and  then 

all  was  over;   and  we  made  nothing  of  having  our 

rags  wetted  a  little ;  but  I  never  understood,  till  a 


246  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

great  while  after,  that  the  crime  was  capital,  and  that 
we  might  be  sent  to  Newgate  for  it,  till  a  great  fellow, 
almost  a  man,  one  of  our  society,  was  hanged  for  it ; 
and  then  I  was  terribly  frighted,  as  you  shall  hear  by 
and  by. 

Well,  upon  the  persuasions  of  this  lad  I  walked 
out  with  him ;  a  poor  innocent  boy,  and  (as  I  re- 
member my  very  thoughts  perfectly  well)  I  had  no 
evil  in  my  intentions ;  I  had  never  stolen  anything 
in  my  life ;  and  if  a  goldsmith  had  left  me  in  his 
shop,  with  heaps  of  money  strewed  all  round  me,  and 
bade  me  look  after  it,  I  should  not  have  touched  it, 
I  was  so  honest ;  but  the  subtle  tempter  baited  his 
hook  for  me,  as  I  was  a  child,  in  a  manner  suitable 
to  my  childishness,  for  I  never  took  this  picking  of 
pockets  to  be  dishonesty,  but,  as  I  have  said  above, 
I  looked  on  it  as  a  kind  of  trade  that  I  was  to  be 
bred  up  to,  and  so  I  entered  upon  it,  till  I  became 
hardened  in  it  beyond  the  power  of  retreating ;  and 
thus  I  was  made  a  thief  involuntarily,  and  went  on  a 
length  that  few  boys  do,  without  coming  to  the 
common  period  of  that  kind  of  life,  I  mean  to  the 
transport-ship,  or  to  the  gallows. 

The  first  day  I  went  abroad  with  my  new  in- 
structor, he  carried  me  directly  into  the  city,  and  as 
we  went  first  to  the  water-side,  he  led  me  into  the 
long-room  at  the  Custom-house  ;  we  were  but  a  couple 
of  ragged  boys  at  best,  but  I  was  much  the  worse ; 


Colonel  Jack  247 

my  leader  had  a  hat  on,  a  shirt,  and  a  neckcloth  \  as 
for  me,  I  had  neither  of  the  three,  nor  had  I  spoiled 
my  manners  so  much  as  to  have  a  hat  on  my  head 
since  my  nurse  died,  which  was  now  some  years. 
His  orders  to  me  were  to  keep  always  in  sight,  and 
near  him,  but  not  close  to  him,  nor  to  take  any  notice 
of  him  at  any  time  till  he  came  to  me ;  and  if  any 
hurlyburly  happened  I  should  by  no  means  know 
him  or  pretend  to  have  anything  to  do  with  him. 

I  observed  my  orders  to  a  tittle.  While  he  peered 
into  every  corner,  and  had  his  eye  upon  everybody, 
I  kept  my  eye  directly  upon  him,  but  went  always  at 
a  distance,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  long-room, 
looking  as  it  were  for  pins,  and  picking  them  up  out 
of  the  dust  as  I  could  find  them,  and  then  sticking 
them  on  my  sleeve,  where  I  had  at  last  got  forty  or 
fifty  good  pins ;  but  still  my  eye  was  upon  my  com- 
rade, who,  I  observed,  was  very  busy  among  the 
crowds  of  people  that  stood  at  the  board  doing 
business  with  the  officers  who  pass  the  entries,  and 
make  the  cocquets,  etc. 

At  length  he  comes  over  to  me,  and  stooping  as 
if  he  would  take  up  a  pin  close  to  me,  he  put  some- 
thing into  my  hand,  and  said,  '  Put  that  up,  and 
follow  me  down  stairs  quickly ; '  he  did  not  run,  but 
shuffled  along  apace  through  the  crowd,  and  went 
down,  not  the  great  stairs  which  we  came  in  at,  but 
a  little  narrow  staircase  at  the  other  end  of  the  long 


248  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

room ;  I  followed,  and  he  found  I  did,  and  so  went 
on,  not  stopping  below  as  I  expected,  nor  speaking 
one  word  to  me,  till  through  innumerable  narrow 
passages,  alleys,  and  dark  ways,  we  were  got  up  into 
Fenchurch  -  street,  and  through  Billiter  -  lane  into 
Leadenhall-street,  and  from  thence  into  Leadenhall- 
market. 

'■  It  was  not  a  meat-market  day,  so  we  had  room  to 
sit  down  upon  one  of  the  butchers'  stalls,  and  he  bid 
me  lug  out.  What  he  had  given  me  was  a  little 
leather  letter-case,  with  a  French  almanack  stuck  in 
the  inside  of  it,  and  a  great  many  papers  in  it  of 
several  kinds. 

We  looked  them  over,  and  found  there  were  seve- 
ral valuable  bills  in  it,  such  as  bills  of  exchange,  and 
other  notes,  things  I  did  not  understand ;  but  among 
the  rest  was  a  goldsmith's  note,  as  he  called  it,  of  one 
Sir  Stephen  Evans,  for  ^300,  payable  to  the  bearer, 
and  at  demand ;  besides  this,  there  was  another  note 
for  ;^i2:ios.,  being  a  goldsmith's  bill  too,  but  I 
forget  the  name ;  there  was  a  bill  or  two  also  written 
in  French,  which  neither  of  us  understood,  but  which 
it  seems  were  things  of  value,  being  called  foreign 
bills  accepted. 

The  rogue,  my  master,  knew  what  belonged  to  the 
goldsmith's  bills  well  enough,  and  I  observed,  when 
he  read  the  bill  of  Sir  Stephen,  he  said,  '  This  is  too 
big  for  me  to  meddle  with  ; '  but  when  he  came  to  the 


Colonel  Jack  249 

bill  ^12  :  I  OS.,  he  said  to  me,  'This  will  do,  come 
hither,  Jack  ; '  so  away  he  runs  to  Lombard-street, 
and  I  after  him,  huddling  the  other  papers  into  the 
letter-case.  As  he  went  along,  he  inquired  the  name 
out  immediately,  and  went  directly  to  the  shop,  put 
on  a  good  grave  countenance,  and  had  the  money 
paid  him  without  any  stop  or  question  asked  ;  I  stood 
on  the  other  side  the  way  looking  about  the  street,  as 
not  at  all  concerned  with  anybody  that  way,  but 
observed  that  when  he  presented  the  bill  he  pulled 
out  the  letter-case,  as  if  he  had  been  a  merchant's 
boy,  acquainted  with  business,  and  had  other  bills 
about  him. 

They  paid  him  the  money  in  gold,  and  he  made 
haste  enough  in  telling  it  over,  and  came  away,  passing 
by  me,  and  going  into  Three-King-court,  on  the  other 
side  of  the  way ;  then  we  crossed  back  into  Clement's- 
lane,  made  the  best  of  our  way  to  Cole-harbour,  at 
the  water-side,  and  got  a  sculler  for  a  penny  to  carry 
us  over  the  water  to  St.  Mary-Over's  stairs,  where  we 
landed,  and  were  safe  enough. 

Here  he  turns  to  me ;  '  Colonel  Jack,'  says  he,  '  I 
believe  you  are  a  lucky  boy,  this  is  a  good  job ;  we'll 
go  away  to  St.  George's  Fields  and  share  our  booty.' 
Away  we  went  to  the  Fields,  and  sitting  down  in  the 
grass,  far  enough  out  of  the  path,  he  pulled  out  the 
money ;  '  Look  here,  Jack,'  says  he,  '  did  you  ever 
see  the  like  before  in  your  life  ?  '     '  No,  never,'  says 


250  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

I,  and  added  very  innocently,  '  Must  we  have  it  all  ? ' 
'  We  have  it ! '  says  he,  '  who  should  have  it  ? ' 
'  Why,'  says  I,  '  must  the  man  have  none  of  it  again 
that  lost  it  ?  '  '  He  have  it  again  ; '  says  he,  '  what 
d'ye  mean  by  that  ? '  '  Nay,  I  don't  know,'  says  I ; 
'  why  you  said  just  now  you  would  let  him  have  the 
t'other  bill  again  ;  that  you  said  was  too  big  for  you.' 

He  laughed  at  me ;  '  You  are  but  a  little  boy,' 
says  he,  '  that's  true,  but  I  thought  you  had  not  been 
such  a  child  neither ; '  so  he  mighty  gravely  explained 
the  thing  to  me  thus  :  that  the  bill  of  Sir  Stephen 
Evans  was  a  great  bill  for  ;£^3oo,  'And  if  I,'  says  he, 
'  that  am  but  a  poor  lad,  should  venture  to  go  for  the 
money,  they  will  presently  say,  how  should  I  come 
by  such  a  bill,  and  that  I  certainly  found  it  or  stole 
it;  so  they  will  stop  me,'  says  he,  'and  take  it  away 
from  me,  and  it  may  bring  me  into  trouble  for  it  too ; 
so,'  says  he,  '  I  did  say  it  was  too  big  for  me  to 
meddle  with,  and  that  I  would  let  the  man  have  it 
again,  if  I  could  tell  how ;  but  for  the  money,  Jack, 
the  money  that  we  have  got,  I  warrant  you  he  should 
have  none  of  that ;  besides,'  says  he,  '  whoever  he  be 
that  has  lost  this  letter-case,  to  be  sure,  as  soon  as  he 
missed  it,  he  would  run  to  the  goldsmith  and  give 
notice  that  if  anybody  came  for  the  money  they 
would  be  stopped ;  but  I  am  too  old  for  him  there,' 
says  he. 

'  Why,'  says   I,  '  and   what  will  you  do  with  the 


Colonel  Jack  25 1 

bill ;  will  you  throw  it  away  ?  if  you  do,  somebody 
else  will  find  it,'  says  I,  'and  they  will  go  and  take 
the  money.'  'No,  no,' says  he,  'then  they  will  be 
stopped  and  examined,  as  I  tell  you  I  should  be.'  I 
did  not  know  well  what  all  this  meant,  so  I  talked  no 
more  about  that ;  but  we  fell  to  handling  the  money. 
As  for  me,  I  had  never  seen  so  much  together  in  all 
my  life,  nor  did  I  know  what  in  the  world  to  do  with 
it,  and  once  or  twice  I  was  going  to  bid  him  keep  it 
for  me,  which  would  have  been  done  like  a  child 
indeed,  for,  to  be  sure,  I  had  never  heard  a  word 
more  of  it,  though  nothing  had  befallen  him. 

However,  as  I  happened  to  hold  my  tongue  as  to 
that  part,  he  shared  the  money  very  honestly  with 
me ;  only  at  the  end  he  told  me  that  though  it  was 
true  he  promised  me  half,  yet  as  it  was  the  first  time, 
and  I  had  done  nothing  but  look  on,  so  he  thought 
it  was  very  well  if  I  took  a  little  less  than  he  did ;  so 
he  divided  the  money,  which  was  ;£i2  :  los.,  into 
two  exact  parts,  viz.,  ^6  :  5s.,  in  each  part;  then  he 
took  ^i  :  5  s.,  from  my  part,  and  told  me  I  should 
give  him  that  for  hansel.  '  Well,'  says  I,  '  take  it 
then,  for  I  think  you  deserve  it  all:'  so,  however,  I 
took  up  the  rest ;  '  and  what  shall  I  do  with  this  now,' 
says  I,  'for  I  have  nowhere  to  put  it?'  'Why,  have 
you  no  pockets?' says  he;  'Yes,'  says  I,  'but  they 
are  full  of  holes.'  I  have  often  thought  since  that, 
and  with  some   mirth  too,  how   I   had   really  more 


252  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

wealth  than  I  knew  what  to  do  with,  for  lodging  I 
had  none,  nor  any  box  or  drawer  to  hide  my  money 
in,  nor  had  I  any  pocket,  but  such  as  I  say  was  full 
of  holes ;  I  knew  nobody  in  the  world  that  I  could  go 
and  desire  them  to  lay  it  up  for  me ;  for  being  a  poor 
naked,  ragged  boy,  they  would  presently  say,  I  had 
robbed  somebody,  and  perhaps  lay  hold  of  me,  and 
my  money  would  be  my  crime,  as  they  say  it  often  is 
in  foreign  countries  ;  and  now,  as  I  was  full  of  wealth, 
behold  I  was  full  of  care,  for  what  to  do  to  secure  my 
money  I  could  not  tell ;  and  this  held  me  so  long, 
and  was  so  vexatious  to  me  the  next  day,  that  I  truly 
sat  down  and  cried. 

Nothing  could  be  more  perplexing  than  this  money 
was  to  me  all  that  night.  I  carried  it  in  my  hand  a 
good  while,  for  it  was  in  gold,  all  but  1 4s. ;  and  that  is 
to  say,  it  was  in  four  guineas,  and  that  14s.,  was  more 
difficult  to  carry  than  the  four  guineas ;  at  last  I  sat 
down,  and  pulled  off  one  of  my  shoes,  and  put  the 
four  guineas  into  that ;  but  after  I  had  gone  a  while, 
my  shoe  hurt  me  so  I  could  not  go,  so  I  was  fain  to 
sit  down  again  and  take  it  out  of  my  shoe,  and  carry 
it  in  my  hand ;  then  I  found  a  dirty  linen  rag  in  the 
street,  and  I  took  that  up,  and  wrapt  it  all  together, 
and  carried  it  in  that  a  good  way.  I  have  often  since 
heard  people  say,  when  they  have  been  talking  of 
money  that  they  could  not  get  in,  '  I  wish  I  had  it  in 
a  foul  clout :'  in  truth,  I  had  mine  in  a  foul  clout ;  for 


Colonel  Jack  253 

it  was  foul,  according  to  the  letter  of  that  saying,  but 
it  served  me  till  I  came  to  a  convenient  place,  and 
then  I  sat  down  and  washed  the  cloth  in  the  kennel, 
and  so  then  put  my  money  in  again. 

Well,  I  carried  it  home  with  me  to  my  lodging  in 
the  glass-house,  and  when  I  went  to  go  to  sleep  I 
knew  not  what  to  do  with  it ;  if  I  had  let  any  of  the 
black  crew  I  was  with  know  of  it,  I  should  have  been 
smothered  in  the  ashes  for  it,  or  robbed  of  it,  or  some 
trick  or  other  put  upon  me  for  it ;  so  I  knew  not 
what  to  do,  but  lay  with  it  in  my  hand,  and  my  hand 
in  my  bosom,  but  then  sleep  went  from  my  eyes  :  O, 
the  weight  of  human  care  !  I,  a  poor  beggar-boy,  could 
not  sleep  so  soon  as  I  had  but  a  little  money  to  keep, 
who,  before  that  could  have  slept  upon  a  heap  of 
brick-bats,  stones,  or  cinders,  or  anywhere,  as  sound 
as  a  rich  man  does  on  his  down  bed,  and  sounder  too. 

Every  now  and  then  dropping  asleep,  I  should 
dream  that  my  money  was  lost,  and  start  like  one 
frighted ;  then,  finding  it  fast  in  my  hand,  try  to  go 
to  sleep  again,  but  could  not  for  a  long  while,  then 
drop  and  start  again.  At  last  a  fancy  came  into  my 
head  that  if  I  fell  asleep  I  should  dream  of  the 
money,  and  talk  of  it  in  my  sleep,  and  tell  that  I  had 
money,  which  if  I  should  do,  and  one  of  the  rogues 
should  hear  me,  they  would  pick  it  out  of  my  bosom, 
and  of  my  hand  too,  without  waking  me ;  and  after 
that  thought  I  could  not  sleep  a  wink  more ;  so  that 


254  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

I  passed  that  night  over  in  care  and  anxiety  enough ; 
and  this,  I  may  safely  say,  was  the  first  night's  rest 
that  I  lost  by  the  cares  of  this  life  and  the  deceitful- 
ness  of  riches. 

As  soon  as  it  was  day  I  got  out  of  the  hole  we  lay 
in,  and  rambled  abroad  in  the  fields  towards  Stepney, 
and  there  I  mused  and  considered  what  I  should  do 
with  this  money,  and  many  a  time  I  wished  that  I 
had  not  had  it ;  for,  after  all  my  ruminating  upon  it, 
and  what  course  I  should  take  with  it,  or  where  I 
should  put  it,  I  could  not  hit  upon  any  one  thing,  or 
any  possible  method  to  secure  it,  and  it  perplexed  me 
so,  that  at  last,  as  I  said  just  now,  I  sat  down  and 
cried  heartily. 

When  my  crying  was  over,  the  case  was  the  same ; 
I  had  the  money  still,  and  what  to  do  with  it  I  could 
not  tell.  At  last  it  came  into  my  head  that  I  would 
look  out  for  some  hole  in  a  tree,  and  see  to  hide  it 
there  till  I  should  have  occasion  for  it.  Big  with  this 
discovery,  as  I  then  thought  it,  I  began  to  look  about 
me  for  a  tree ;  but  there  were  no  trees  in  the  fields 
about  Stepney  or  Mile-end  that  looked  fit  for  my 
purpose ;  and  if  there  were  any  that  I  began  to  look 
narrowly  at,  the  fields  were  so  full  of  people  that  they 
would  see  if  I  went  to  hide  anything  there,  and  I 
thought  the  people  eyed  me  as  it  were,  and  that  two 
men  in  particular  followed  me  to  see  what  I  intended 
to  do. 


Colonel  Jack  255 

This  drove  me  farther  off,  and  I  crossed  the  road 
at  Mile-end,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  town  went  down 
a  lane  that  goes  away  to  the  Blind  Beggar's  at  Bednal- 
green  ;  when  I  came  a  little  way  in  the  lane  I  found 
a  footpath  over  the  fields,  and  in  those  fields  several 
trees  for  my  turn,  as  I  thought ;  at  last,  one  tree  had 
a  little  hole  in  it,  pretty  high  out  of  my  reach,  and  I 
climbed  up  the  tree  to  get  it,  and  when  I  came  there 
I  put  my  hand  in,  and  found  (as  I  thought)  a  place 
very  fit,  so  I  placed  my  treasure  there,  and  was  mighty 
well  satisfied  with  it ;  but,  behold,  putting  my  hand 
in  again  to  lay  it  more  commodiously,  as  I  thought, 
of  a  sudden  it  slipped  away  from  me,  and  I  found  the 
tree  was  hollow,  and  my  little  parcel  was  fallen  in 
quite  out  of  my  reach,  and  how  far  it  might  go  in  I 
knew  not ;  so  that,  in  a  word,  my  money  was  quite 
gone,  irrecoverably  lost ;  there  could  be  no  room  so 
much  as  to  hope  ever  to  see  it  again,  for  'twas  a  vast 
great  tree. 

As  young  as  I  was,  I  was  now  sensible  what  a  fool 
I  was  before,  that  I  could  not  think  of  ways  to  keep 
my  money,  but  I  must  come  thus  far  to  throw  it  into 

\  a  hole  where  I  could  not  reach  it.  Well,  I  thrust  my 
hand  quite  up  to  my  elbow,  but  no  bottom  was  to  be 
found,  or  any  end  of  the  hole  or  cavity ;  I  got  a  stick 

I  of  the  tree,  and  thrust  it  in  a  great  way,  but  all  was 
one ;  then  I  cried,  nay,  roared  out,  I  was  in  such  a 
passion;  then  I  got  down  the  tree  again,  then  up 


256  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

again,  and  thrust  in  my  hand  again  till  I  scratched 
my  arm  and  made  it  bleed,  and  cried  all  the  while 
most  violently ;  then  I  began  to  think  I  had  not  so 
much  as  a  halfpenny  of  it  left  for  a  halfpenny  roll, 
and  I  was  hungry,  and  then  I  cried  again ;  then  I 
came  away  in  despair,  crying  and  roaring  like  a  little 
boy  that  had  been  whipped  ;  then  I  went  back  again 
to  the  tree,  and  up  the  tree  again,  and  thus  I  did 
several  times. 

The  last  time  I  had  gotten  up  the  tree  I  happened 
to  come  down  not  on  the  same  side  that  I  went  up 
and  came  down  before,  but  on  the  other  side  of  the 
tree,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  bank  also ;  and, 
behold,  the  tree  had  a  great  open  place,  in  the  side  of 
it  close  to  the  ground,  as  old  hollow  trees  often  have ; 
and  looking  into  the  open  place,  to  my  inexpressible 
joy  there  lay  my  money  and  my  linen  rag,  all  wrapped 
up  just  as  I  had  put  it  into  the  hole ;  for  the  tree 
being  hollow  all  the  way  up  there  had  been  some 
moss  or  light  stuff,  which  I  had  not  judgment  enough 
to  know,  was  not  firm,  and  had  given  way  when  it 
came  to  drop  out  of  my  hand,  and  so  it  had  slipped 
quite  down  at  once. 

I  was  but  a  child,  and  I  rejoiced  like  a  child,  for 
I  hollo'd  quite  out  aloud  when  I  saw  it ;  then  I  ran 
to  it,  and  snatched  it  up,  hugged  and  kissed  the  dirty 
rag  a  hundred  times;  then  danced  and  jumped  about, 
ran  from  one  end  of  the  field  to  the  other,  and,  in 


Colonel  Jack  257 

short,  I  knew  not  what,  much  less  do   I  know  now 
what   I  did,  though  I   shall  never  forget  the  thing 
either  what  a  sinking  grief  it  was  to  my  heart,  when  I 
thought   I  had  lost  it,  or  what  a  flood  of  joy  over- 
whelmed me  when  I  had  got  it  again. 

While  I  was  in  the  first  transport  of  my  joy,  as  I 
have  said,  I  ran  about,  and  knew  not  what  I  did  ; 
but  when  that  was  over  I  sat  down,  opened  the  foul 
clout  the  money  was  in,  looked  at  it,  told  it,  found  it 
was  all  there,  and  then  I  fell  a-crying  as  savourly  as  I 
did  before,  when  I  thought  I  had  lost  it. 

It  would  tire  the  reader  should  I  dwell  on  all  the 
little  boyish  tricks  that  I  played  in  the  ecstacy  of  my 
joy  and  satisfaction,  when  I  had  found  my  money;  so 
I  break  off  here.  Joy  is  as  extravagant  as  grief,  and 
since  I  have  been  a  man  I  have  often  thought  that 
bad  such  a  thing  befallen  a  man,  so  to  have  lost  all  he 
had,  and  not  have  a  bit  of  bread  to  eat,  and  then  so 
Istrangely  to  find  it  again,  after  having  given  it  so  effect- 
Jaally  over, — I  say,  had  it  been  so  with  a  man,  it  might 
liave  hazarded  his  using  some  violence  upon  himself 

Well,  I  came  away  with  my  money,  and,  having 
:aken  sixpence  out  of  it,  before  I  made  it  up  again,  I 
vent  to  a  chandler's  shop  in  Mile-end,  and  bought  a 
Halfpenny  roll  and  a  halfpenny-worth  of  cheese,  and 
iat  down  at  the  door  after  I  bought  it,  and  ate  it  very 
leartily,  and  begged  some  beer  to  drink  with  it,  which 
he  good  woman  gave  me  very  freely. 

s 


258  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

Away  I  went  then  for  the  town,  to  see  if  I  could 
find  any  of  my  companions,  and  resolved  I  would  try 
no  more  hollow  trees  for  my  treasure.  As  I  came 
along  Whitechapel,  I  came  by  a  broker's  shop,  over 
against  the  church,  where  they  sold  old  clothes,  for  I 
had  nothing  on  but  the  worst  of  rags ;  so  I  stopped 
at  the  shop,  and  stood  looking  at  the  clothes  which 
hung  at  the  door. 

'Well,  young  gentleman,'  says  a  man  that  stood  at 
the  door,  '  you  look  wishfully  ;  do  you  see  anything 
you  like,  and  will  your  pocket  compass  a  good  coat 
now,  for  you  look  as  if  you  belonged  to  the  ragged 
regiment?'  I  was  affronted  at  the  fellow.  'What's 
that  to  you,'  says  I,  'how  ragged  I  am?  if  I  had  seen 
anything  I  liked  I  have  money  to  pay  for  it ;  but  I 
can  go  where  I  shan't  be  huffed  at  for  looking.' 

While  I  said  thus,  pretty  boldly  to  the  fellow, 
comes  a  woman  out,  'What  ails  you,'  says  she  to  the 
man,  '  to  bully  away  our  customers  so  ?  a  poor  boy's 
money  is  as  good  as  my  lord  mayor's ;  if  poor  people 
did  not  buy  old  clothes  what  would  become  of  our 
business  ? '  and,  then  turning  to  me,  '  Come  hither, 
child,'  says  she,  '  if  thou  hast  a  mind  to  anything  I 
have,  you  shan't  be  hectored  by  him  ;  the  boy  is  a 
pretty  boy,  I  assure  you,'  says  she,  to  another  woman 
that  was  by  this  time  come  to  her.  '  Ay,'  says  the 
t'other,  '  so  he  is,  a  very  well-looking  child,  if  he  was 
clean  and  well  dressed,  and  may  be  as  good  a  gentle- 


Colonel  Jack  259 

man's  son  for  anything  we  know,  as  any  of  those  that 
are  well  dressed.  Come,  my  dear,'  says  she,  '  tell  me 
what  is  it  you  would  have  ?'  She  pleased  me  mightily 
to  hear  her  talk  of  my  being  a  gentleman's  son,  and 
it  brought  former  things  to  my  mind  ;  but  when  she 
talk'd  of  my  being  not  clean,  and  in  rags,  then  I  cried. 

She  pressed  me  to  tell  her  if  I  saw  anything  that  I 
wanted  ;  I  told  her  no,  all  the  clothes  I  saw  there 
were  too  big  for  me.  '  Come,  child,'  says  she,  '  I 
have  two  things  here  that  will  fit  you,  and  I  am  sure 
you  want  them  both ;  that  is,  first,  a  little  hat,  and 
there,'  says  she  (tossing  it  to  me),  '  I'll  give  you  that 
for  nothing;  and  here  is  a  good  warm  pair  of  breeches; 
I  dare  say,'  says  she,  '  they  will  fit  you,  and  they  are 
very  tight  and  good ;  and,'  says  she,  '  if  you  should 
ever  come  to  have  so  much  money  that  you  don't 
know  what  to  do  with  it,  here  are  excellent  good 
pockets,'  says  she,  '  and  a  little  fob  to  put  your  gold 
in,  or  your  watch  in,  when  you  get  it' 

It  struck  me  with  a  strange  kind  of  joy  that  I 
should  have  a  place  to  put  my  money  in,  and  need 
not  go  to  hide  it  again  in  a  hollow  tree ;  that  I  was 
ready  to  snatch  the  breeches  out  of  her  hands,  and 
wondered  that  I  should  be  such  a  fool  never  to  think 
of  buying  me  a  pair  of  breeches  before,  that  I  might 
have  a  pocket  to  put  my  money  in,  and  not  carry  it 
about  two  days  together  in  my  hand,  and  in  my  shoe, 
and  I  knew  not  how ;  so,  in  a  word,  I  gave  her  two 


26o  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

shillings  for  the  breeches,  and  went  over  into  the 
churchyard,  and  put  them  on,  put  my  money  into  my 
new  pockets,  and  was  as  pleased  as  a  prince  is  with 
his  coach  and  six  horses.  I  thanked  the  good 
woman  too  for  the  hat,  and  told  her  I  would  come 
again  when  I  got  more  money,  and  buy  some  other 
things  I  wanted ;  and  so  I  came  away. 

I  was  but  a  boy  'tis  true,  but  I  thought  myself  a 
man,  now  I  had  got  a  pocket  to  put  my  money  in, 
and  I  went  directly  to  find  out  my  companion,  by 
whose  means  I  got  it ;  but  I  was  frighted  out  of  my 
wits  when  I  heard  that  he  was  carried  to  Bridewell ; 
I  made  no  question  but  it  was  for  the  letter-case,  and 
that  I  should  be  carried  there  too  ;  and  then  my  poor 
brother  Captain  Jack's  case  came  into  my  head,  and 
that  I  should  be  whipped  there  as  cruelly  as  he  was, 
and  I  was  in  such  a  fright  that  I  knew  not  what 
to  do. 

But  in  the  afternoon  I  met  him  ;  he  had  been 
carried  to  Bridewell,  it  seems,  upon  that  very  affair, 
but  was  got  out  again.  The  case  was  thus  :  having 
had  such  good  luck  at  the  custom-house  the  day 
before  he  takes  his  walk  thither  again,  and  as  he  was 
in  the  long-room,  gaping  and  staring  about  him,  a 
fellow  lays  hold  of  him,  and  calls  to  one  of  the  clerks 
that  sat  behind,  '  Here,'  says  he,  '  is  the  same  young 
rogue  that  I  told  you  I  saw  loitering  about  t'other 
day,  when  the  gentleman  lost  his  letter-case  and  his 


Colonel  Jack  26 1 

goldsmith's  bills ;  I  dare  say  it  was  he  that  stole 
them.'  Immediately  the  whole  crowd  of  people 
gathered  about  the  boy,  and  charged  him  point  blank  ; 
but  he  was  too  well  used  to  such  things  to  be  frighted 
into  a  confession  of  what  he  knew  they  could  not 
prove,  for  he  had  nothing  about  him  belonging  to  it, 
nor  had  any  money,  but  sixpence  and  a  few  dirty 
farthings. 

They  threatened  him,  and  pulled  and  hauled  him, 
till  they  almost  pulled  the  clothes  off  his  back,  and 
the  commissioners  examined  him ;  but  all  was  one, 
he  would  own  nothing,  but  said  he  walked  up  through 
the  room  only  to  see  the  place,  both  then  and  the 
time  before,  for  he  had  owned  he  was  there  before ; 
so  as  there  was  no  proof  against  him  of  any  fact,  no, 
nor  of  any  circumstances  relating  to  the  letter-case, 
they  were  forced  at  last  to  let  him  go ;  however,  they 
made  a  show  of  carrying  him  to  Bridewell,  and  they 
did  carry  him  to  the  gate  to  see  if  they  could  make  him 
confess  anything ;  but  he  would  confess  nothing,  and 
they  had  no  mittimus ;  so  they  durst  not  carry  him 
into  the  house,  nor  would  the  people  have  received 
him,  I  suppose,  if  they  had,  they  having  no  warrant 
for  putting  him  in  prison. 

Well,  when  they  could  get  nothing  out  of  him 
they  carried  him  into  an  alehouse,  and  there  they 
told  him  that  the  letter-case  had  bills  in  it  of  a  very 
great  value,  that  they  would  be  of  no  use  to  the  rogue 


262  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

that  had  them,  but  they  would  be  of  infinite  damage 
to  the  gentleman  that  had  lost  them;  and  that  he 
had  left  word  with  the  clerk,  who  the  man  that  stopped 
this  boy  had  called  to,  and  who  was  there  with  him, 
that  he  would  give  ;£"3o  to  any  one  that  would  bring 
them  again,  and  give  all  the  security  that  could  be 
desired  that  he  would  give  them  no  trouble,  whoever 
it  was. 

He  was  just  come  from  out  of  their  hands  when 
I  met  with  him,  and  so  he  told  me  all  the  story; 
'  but,'  says  he,  '  I  would  confess  nothing,  and  so  I 
got  off,  and  am  come  away  clear.'  'Well,'  says  I, 
'and  what  will  you  do  with  the  letter-case,  and  the 
bills,  will  not  you  let  the  poor  man  have  his  bills 
again  ?'  '  No,  not  I,'  says  he,  '  I  won't  trust  them, 
what  care  I  for  their  bills?'  It  came  into  my  head, 
as  young  as  I  was,  that  it  was  a  sad  thing  indeed  to 
take  a  man's  bills  away  for  so  much  money,  and  not 
have  any  advantage  by  it  either;  for  I  concluded 
that  the  gentleman  who  owned  the  bills  must  lose 
all  the  money,  and  it  was  strange  he  should  keep  the 
bills  and  make  a  gentleman  lose  so  much  money  for 
nothing.  I  remember  that  I  ruminated  very  much 
about  it,  and,  though  I  did  not  understand  it  very 
well,  yet  it  lay  upon  my  mind,  and  I  said  every  now 
and  then  to  him,  '  Do  let  the  gentleman  have  his 
bills  again ;  do,  pray  do ; '  and  so  I  teazed  him  with 
do,  and  pray  do,  till  at  last  I  cried  about  them.     He 


Colonel  Jack  263 

said,  '  What,  would  you  have  me  be  found  out  and 
sent  to  Bridewell,  and  be  whipped,  as  your  brother 
Captain  Jack  was?'  I  said,  'No,  I  would  not  have 
you  whipped,  but  I  would  have  the  man  have  his 
bills,  for  they  will  do  you  no  good,  but  the  gentleman 
will  be  undone,  it  may  be  ; '  and  then,  I  added  again, 
'  Do  let  him  have  them.'  He  snapped  me  short, 
'  Why,'  says  he,  '  how  shall  I  get  them  to  him  ?  Who 
dare  carry  them  ?  I  dare  not,  to  be  sure,  for  they 
will  stop  me,  and  bring  the  goldsmith  to  see  if  he 
does  not  know  me,  and  that  I  received  the  money, 
and  so  they  will  prove  the  robbery,  and  I  shall  be 
hanged  \  would  you  have  me  be  hanged.  Jack  ? ' 

I  was  silenced  a  good  while  with  that,  for  when  he 
said,  'Would  you  have  me  be  hanged.  Jack  ?'  I  had  no 
more  to  say ;  but  one  day  after  this  he  called  to  me, 
'  Colonel  Jack,'  says  he,  '  I  have  thought  of  a  way 
how  the  gentleman  shall  have  his  bills  again ;  and 
you  and  I  shall  get  a  good  deal  of  money  by  it  if 
you  will  be  honest  to  me,  as  I  was  to  you.'  '  Indeed,' 
says  I,  '  Robin,'  that  was  his  name,  '  I  will  be  very 
honest ;  let  me  know  how  it  is,  for  I  would  fain  have 
him  have  his  bills.' 

'  Why,'  says  he,  '  they  told  me  that  he  had  left 
word  at  the  clerk's  place  in  the  long-room,  that  he 
would  give  ^30  to  any  one  that  had  the  bills,  and 
would  restore  them,  and  would  ask  no  questions. 
Now,  if  you  will  go,  like  a  poor  innocent  boy,  as  you 


264  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

are,  into  the  long-room,  and  speak  to  the  clerk,  it 
may  do ;  tell  him,  if  the  gentleman  will  do  as  he 
promised,  you  believe  you  can  tell  him  who  has  it ; 
and  if  they  are  civil  to  you,  and  willing  to  be  as  good 
as  their  words,  you  shall  have  the  letter-case,  and 
give  it  them.' 

I  told  him,  '  Ay,  I  would  go  with  all  my  heart.' 
'  But,  Colonel  Jack,'  says  he,  '  what  if  they  should 
take  hold  of  you,  and  threaten  to  have  you  whipped, 
won't  you  discover  me  to  them?'  'No,'  says  I,  'if 
they  would  whip  me  to  death  I  won't.'  '  Well,  then,' 
says  he,  '  there's  the  letter-case,  do  you  go.'  So  he 
gave  me  directions  how  to  act,  and  what  to  say ;  but 
I  would  not  take  the  letter-case  with  me,  lest  they 
should  prove  false,  and  take  hold  of  me,  thinking  to 
find  it  upon  me,  and  so  charge  me  with  the  fact ;  so 
I  left  it  with  him,  and  the  next  morning  I  went  to 
the  custom-house,  as  was  agreed ;  what  my  directions 
were,  will,  to  avoid  repetition,  appear  in  what  happened; 
it  was  an  errand  of  too  much  consequence  indeed  to 
be  entrusted  to  a  boy,  not  only  so  young  as  I  was, 
but  so  little  of  a  rogue  as  I  was  yet  arrived  to  -the 
degree  of. 

Two  things  I  was  particularly  armed  with,  which  I 
resolved  upon  :  i.  That  the  man  should  have  his 
bills  again ;  for  it  seemed  a  horrible  thing  to  me  that 
he  should  be  made  to  lose  his  money,  which  I  sup- 
posed he  must,  purely  because  we  would  not  carry 


Colonel  Jack  265 

the  letter-case  home.  2.  That  whatever  happened  to 
me,  I  was  never  to  tell  the  name  of  my  comrade 
Robin,  who  had  been  the  principal.  With  these  two 
pieces  of  honesty,  for  such  they  were  both  in  them- 
selves, and  with  a  manly  heart,  though  a  boy's  head, 
I  went  up  into  the  long-room  in  the  Custom-house 
the  next  day. 

As  soon  as  I  came  to  the  place  where  the  thing 
was  done,  I  saw  the  man  sit  just  where  he  had  sat 
before,  and  it  ran  in  my  head  that  he  had  sat  there 
ever  since ;  but  I  knew  no  better ;  so  I  went  up,  and 
stood  just  at  that  side  of  the  writing-board  that  goes 
upon  that  side  of  the  room,  and  which  I  was  but  just 
tall  enough  to  lay  my  arms  upon. 

While  I  stood  there,  one  thrust  me  this  way,  and 
another  thrust  me  that  way,  and  the  man  that  sat 
behind  began  to  look  at  me ;  at  last  he  called  out  to 
me ;  '  What  does  that  boy  do  there  ?  get  you  gone, 
sirrah ;  are  you  one  of  the  rogues  that  stole  the 
gentleman's  letter-case  on  Monday  last?'  Then  he 
turns  his  tale  to  a  gentleman  that  was  doing  business 

with  him,  and  goes  on  thus  :   '  Here  was  Mr.  

had  a  very  unlucky  chance  on  Monday  last,  did  not 
you  hear  of  it  ?'  '  No,  not  I,'  says  the  gentleman. 
*Why,  standing  just  there,  where  you  do,'  says  he, 
*  making  his  entries,  he  pulled  out  his  letter-case, 
and  laid  it  down,  as  he  says,  but  just  at  his  hand, 
while  he  reached  over  to  the  standish  there  for  a 


266  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

penful  of  ink,  and  somebody  stole  away  his  letter- 
case.' 

'  His  letter-case  ! '  says  t'other,  '  what,  and  was  there 
any  bills  in  it?' 

'  Ay,'  says  he,  '  there  was  Sir  Stephen  Evans's  note 
in  it  for  ;£3oo,  and  another  goldsmith's  bill  for  about 
^12,  and,  which  is  worse  still  for  the  gentleman,  he 
had  two  foreign  accepted  bills  in  it  for  a  great  sum,  I 
know  not  how  much,  I  think  one  was  a  French  bill 
for  1 200  crowns.' 

'  And  who  could  it  be  ? '  says  the  gentleman. 

'  Nobody  knows,'  says  he,  '  but  one  of  our  room- 
keepers  says  he  saw  a  couple  of  young  rogues  like 
that,'  pointing  at  me,  'hanging  about  here,  and  that 
on  a  sudden  they  were  both  gone.' 

'  Villains  ! '  says  he  again  ;  '  why,  what  can  they 
do  with  them,  they  will  be  of  no  use  to  them  ?  I 
suppose  he  went  immediately  and  gave  notice  to 
prevent  the  payment.' 

'Yes,'  says  the  clerk,  'he  did;  but  the  rogues 
were  too  nimble  for  him  with  the  little  bill  of  ;2^  i  2 
odd  money ;  they  went  and  got  the  money  for  that, 
but  all  the  rest  are  stopped  ;  however,  'tis  an  unspeak- 
able damage  to  him  for  want  of  his  money.' 

'Why,  he  should  pubhsh  a  reward  for  the  en- 
couragement of  those  that  have  them  to  jDring  them 
again ;  they  would  be  glad  to  bring  them,  I  warrant 
you.' 


Colonel  Jack  267 

'  He  has  posted  it  up  at  the  door,  that  he  will  give 
^30  for  them.' 

'Ay,  but  he  should  add,  that  he  will  promise  not 
to  stop,  or  give  any  trouble  to  the  person  that  brings 
them.' 

'  He  has  done  that  too,'  says  he,  '  but  I  fear  they 
won't  trust  themselves  to  be  honest,  for  fear  he  should 
break  his  word.' 

'  Why,  it  is  true,  he  may  break  his  word  in  that 
case,  but  no  man  should  do  so ;  for  then  no  rogue 
will  venture  to  bring  home  anything  that  is  stolen, 
and  so  he  would  do  an  injury  to  others  after  him.' 

'  I  durst  pawn  my  life  for  him,  he  would  scorn  it.' 

Thus  far  they  discoursed  of  it,  and  then  went  off 
to  something  else.  I  heard  it  all,  but  did  not  know 
what  to  do  a  great  while ;  but  at  last,  watching  the 
gentleman  that  went  away,  when  he  was  gone,  I  ran 
after  him  to  have  spoken  to  him,  intending  to  have 
broke  it  to  him,  but  he  went  hastily  into  a  room  or  two, 
full  of  people,  at  the  hither  end  of  the  long-room  ; 
and  when  I  went  to  follow,  the  doorkeepers  turned 
me  back  and  told  me,  I  must  not  go  in  there ;  so  I 
went  back,  and  loitered  about,  near  the  man  that  sat 
behind  the  board,  and  hung  about  there  till  I  found 
the  clock  struck  twelve,  and  the  room  began  to  be 
thin  of  people ;  and  at  last  he  sat  there  writing,  but 
nobody  stood  at  the  board  before  him,  as  there  had 
all   the  rest   of  the  morning ;  then    1   came  a  little 


268  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

nearer,  and  stood  close  to  the  board,  as  I  did  before ; 
when,  looking  up  from  his  paper,  and  seeing  me,  says 
he  to  me,  'You  have  been  up  and  down  there  all 
this  morning,  sirrah,  what  do  you  want?  you  have 
some  business  that  is  not  very  good,  I  doubt.' 

'  No,  I  han't,'  said  I. 

'  No  ?  it  is  well  if  you  han't,'  says  he ;  '  pray  what 
business  can  you  have  in  the  long-room,  sir ;  you  are 
no  merchant  ?' 

'  I  would  speak  with  you,'  said  I. 

'  With  me,'  says  he,  '  what  have  you  to  say  to  me  ?' 

'  I  have  something  to  say,'  said  I,  '  if  you  will  do 
me  no  harm  for  it.' 

'  I  do  thee  harm,  child,  what  harm  should  I  do 
thee?'  and  spoke  very  kindly. 

'Won't  you  indeed,  sir?'  said  I, 

'  No,  not  I,  child ;  I'll  do  thee  no  harm ;  what  is 
it  ?  do  you  know  anything  of  the  gentleman's  letter- 
case?' 

I  answered,  but  spoke  softly,  that  he  could  not 
hear  me  :  so  he  gets  over  presently  into  the  seat  next 
him,  and  opens  a  place  that  was  made  to  come  out, 
and  bade  me  come  in  to  him ;  and  I  did. 

Then  he  asked  me  again  if  I  knew  anything  of 
the  letter-case. 

I  spoke  softly  again,  and  said,  Folks  would  hear 
him. 

Then  he  whispered  softly,  and  asked  me  again. 


Colonel  Jack  269 

i  I  told  him  I  believed  I  did ;  but  that,  indeed,  I 
had  it  not,  nor  had  no  hand  in  steahng  it,  but  it  was 
gotten  into  the  hands  of  a  boy  that  would  have  burnt 
it,  if  it  had  not  been  for  me ;  and  that  I  heard  him 
say  that  the  gentleman  would  be  glad  to  have  them 
again,  and  give  a  good  deal  of  money  for  them. 

'  I  did  say  so,  child,'  said  he,  '  and  if  you  can  get 
them  for  him  he  shall  give  you  a  good  reward,  no 
less  than  ^30,  as  he  has  promised.' 

'  But  you  said  too,  sir,  to  the  gentleman  just  now,' 
said  I,  '  that  you  was  sure  he  would  not  bring  them 
into  any  harm  that  should  bring  them.' 

'  No,  you  shall  come  to  no  harm ;  I  will  pass  my 
word  for  it.' 

Boy.  Nor  shan't  they  make  me  bring  other  people 
into  trouble  ? 

Gent.  No,  you  shall  not  be  asked  the  name  of 
anybody,  nor  to  tell  who  they  are. 

Boy.  I  am  but  a  poor  boy,  and  I  would  fain  have 
the  gentleman  have  his  bills,  and  indeed  I  did  not 
take  them  away,  nor  I  han't  got  them. 

Ge7it.  But  can  you  tell  how  the  gentleman  shall 
have  them  ? 

Boy.  If  I  can  get  them  I  will  bring  them  to  you 
to-morrow  morning. 

Gent.   Can  you  not  do  it  to-night  ? 

Boy.   I  believe  I  may  if  I  knew  where  to  come. 

Gent.   Come  to  my  house,  child. 


270  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

Boy.   I  don't  know  where  you  live. 

Gent.  Go  along  with  me  now,  and  you  shall  see. 
So  he  carried  me  up  into  Tower-street,  and  showed 
me  his  house,  and  ordered  me  to  come  there  at  five 
o'clock  at  night ;  which  accordingly  I  did,  and  carried 
the  letter-case  with  me. 

When  I  came  the  gentleman  asked  me  if  I  had 
brought  the  book,  as  he  called  it. 

'  It  is  not  a  book,'  said  I. 

'  No,  the  letter-case,  that's  all  one,'  says  he. 

'You  promised  me,'  said  I,  'you  would  not  hurt 
me,'  and  cried. 

'  Don't  be  afraid,  child,'  says  he,  '  I  will  not  hurt 
thee,  poor  boy ;  nobody  shall  hurt  thee.' 

'  Here  it  is,'  said  I,  and  pulled  it  out. 

He  then  brought  in  another  gentleman,  who  it 
seems  owned  the  letter-case,  and  asked  him  if  that 
was  it  ?  and  he  said,  '  Yes.' 

Then  he  asked  me  if  all  the  bills  were  in  it  ? 

I  told  him  I  heard  him  say  there  was  one  gone, 
but  I  believed  there  was  all  the  rest. 

'Why  do  you  believe  so?'  says  he. 

'  Because  I  heard  the  boy  that  I  believe  stole  them, 
say  they  were  too  big  for  him  to  meddle  with.' 

The  gentleman,  then,  that  owned  them,  said, 
'  Where  is  the  boy?' 

Then  the  other  gentleman  put  in,  and  said,  '  No, 
you  must  not  ask  him  that ;  I  passed  my  word  that 


Colonel  Jack  27  r 

you  should  not,  and  that  he  should  not  be  obliged  to 
tell  it  to  anybody.' 

'Well,  child,'  says  he,  'you  will  let  us  see  the 
letter-case  opened,  and  whether  the  bills  are  in  it?' 

'Yes,'  says  I. 

Then  the  first  gentleman  said,  '  How  many  bills 
were  there  in  it?' 

'  Only  three,'  says  he,  '  besides  the  bill  oi £^\2  :  los. ; 
there  was  Sir  Stephen  Evans's  note  for  ^300,  and 
two  foreign  bills.' 

'Well,  then,  if  they  are  in  the  letter-case,  the  boy 
shall  have  ^30,  shall  he  not?'  'Yes,'  says  the 
gentleman,  'he  shall  have  it  freely.' 

'Come  then,  child,'  says  he,  'let  me  open  it.' 

So  I  gave  it  him,  and  he  opened  it,  and  there 
were  all  three  bills,  and  several  other  papers,  fair  and 
safe,  nothing  defaced  or  diminished,  and  the  gentle- 
man said,  '  All  is  right.' 

Then  said  the  first  man,  'Then  I  am  security  to 
the  poor  boy  for  the  money.'  'Well,  but,'  says  the 
gentleman,  'the  rogues  have  got  the  £,\2  :  los.;  they 
ought  to  reckon  that  as  part  of  the  £^0.''  Had  he 
asked  me,  I  should  have  consented  to  it  at  first  word  ; 
but  the  first  man  stood  my  friend.  '  Nay,'  says  he, 
'it  was  since  you  knew  that  the  ^12  :  los.  was  re- 
ceived that  you  offered  ^30  for  the  other  bills,  and 
published  it  by  the  crier,  and  posted  it  up  at  the 
custom-house  door,  and  I  promised  him  the  ^30  this 


272 


Defoe's  Minor  Novels 


morning.'  They  argued  long,  and  I  thought  would 
have  quarrelled  about  it. 

However,  at  last  they  both  yielded  a  little,  and  the 
gentleman  gave  me  £,2^  in  good  guineas.  When  he 
gave  it  me,  he  bade  me  hold  out  my  hand,  and  he 
told  the  money  into  my  hand ;  and  when  he  had 
done,  he  asked  me  if  it  was  right  ?  I  said  I  did  not 
know,  but  I  believed  it  was:  'Why,'  says  he,  'can't 
you  tell  it  ? '  I  told  him.  No  ;  I  never  saw  so  much 
money  in  my  life,  nor  I  did  not  know  how  to  tell 
money.  '  Why,'  says  he,  '  don't  you  know  that  they 
are  guineas  ? '  No,  I  told  him,  I  did  not  know  how 
much  a  guinea  was. 

'Why,  then,'  says  he,  'did  you  tell  me  you  be- 
lieved it  was  right  ?  '  I  told  him  because  I  believed 
he  would  not  give  it  me  wrong. 

'  Poor  child,'  says  he,  '  thou  knowest  little  of  the 
world,  indeed ;  what  art  thou  ?  ' 

'  I  am  a  poor  boy,'  says  I,  and  cried. 

'What  is  your  name?'  says  he — 'but  hold,  I  for- 
got,' said  he;  '  I  promised  I  would  not  ask  your  name, 
so  you  need  not  tell  me.' 

'  My  name  is  Jack,'  said  I. 

'Why,  have  you  no  surname?'  said  he. 

'What  is  that?'  said  I. 

'  You  have  some  other  name  besides  Jack,'  says 
he,  'han't  you?' 

'Yes,'  says  I,  'they  call  me  Colonel  Jack.' 


Colonel  Jack  273 

'But  have  you  no  other  name?' 

'No,'  said  I. 

'  How  came  you  to  be  called  Colonel  Jack,  pray  ? 

'  They  say,'  said  I,  *  my  father's  name  was  Colonel 

'Is  your  father  or  mother  alive?'  said  he. 

'No,'  said  I,  'my  father  is  dead.' 

'Where  is  your  mother  then?'  said  he. 

'  I  never  had  e'er  a  mother,'  said  I. 

This  made  him  laugh.  '  What,'  said  he,  '  had  you 
never  a  mother,  what  then  ?  ' 

'  I  had  a  nurse,'  said  I,  '  but  she  was  not  my 
mother. ' 

'Well,'  says  he  to  the  gentleman,  'I  dare  say  this 
boy  was  not  the  thief  that  stole  your  bills.' 

'  Indeed,  sir,  I  did  not  steal  them,'  said  I,  and 
cried  again. 

'  No,  no,  child,'  said  he,  '  we  don't  believe  you 
did.  This  is  a  very  clever  boy,'  says  he,  to  the  other 
gentleman,  '  and  yet  very  ignorant  and  honest ;  'tis 
[pity  some  care  should  not  be  taken  of  him,  and 
[something  done  for  him ;  let  us  talk  a  little  more 
livith  him.'  So  they  sat  down  and  drank  wine,  and 
j^ave  me  some,  and  then  the  first  gentleman  talked  to 
ne  again. 

'Well,'   says    he,    'what   wilt    thou    do   with    this 
oney  now  thou  hast  it  ?' 
'  I  don't  know,'  said  I. 
'  Where  will  you  put  it  ?  '  said  he. 

T 


274  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

'  In  my  pocket,'  said  I. 

'  In  your  pocket,'  said  he  ;  'is  your  pocket  whole  ? 
shan't  you  lose  it  ?  ' 

'Yes,'  said  I,  'my  pocket  is  whole.' 

'  And  where  will  you  put  it,  when  you  get  home  ? ' 

'  I  have  no  home,'  said  I ;  and  cried  again. 

'  Poor  child  ! '  said  he,  '  then  what  dost  thou  do 
for  thy  living  ?  ' 

'I  go  of  errands,'  said  I,  ' for  the  folks  in  Rose- 
mary-lane.' 

'  And  what  dost  thou  do  for  a  lodging  at  night  ? ' 

'  I  lie  at  the  glass-house,'  said  I,  '  at  night.' 

'  How,  lie  at  the  glass-house  !  have  they  any  beds 
there  ? '  says  he. 

'  I   never  lay  in  a  bed   in  my  life,'  said  I,  '  as   I  : 
remember.' 

'  Why,'  says  he,  '  what  do  you  lie  on  at  the  glass- 
house ? ' 

'The  ground,'  says  I,  'and  sometimes  a  little 
straw,  or  upon  the  warm  ashes.' 

Here  the  gentleman  that  lost  the  bills,  said,  '  This 
poor  child  is  enough  to  make  a  man  weep  for  the 
miseries  of  human  nature,  and  be  thankful  for  him- 
self; he  puts  tears  into  my  eyes.'  'And  into  mine 
too,'  says  the  other. 

'Well,  but  hark  ye.  Jack,'  says  the  first  gentleman, 
'  do  they  give  you  no  money  when  they  send  you  of 
errands  ? ' 


Colonel  Jack  275 

'They  give  me  victuals,'  said  I,  'and  that's  better.' 

'  But  what,'  says  he,  '  do  you  do  for  clothes  ?' 

'  They  give  me  sometimes  old  things,'  said  I, 
"such  as  they  have  to  spare.' 

'  Why,  you  have  never  a  shirt  on,  I  believe,'  said 
le,  '  have  you  ?' 

'  No,  I  never  had  a  shirt,'  said  I,  '  since  my  nurse 
iied.' 

'  How  long  ago  is  that  ?'  said  he. 

'  Six  winters,  when  this  is  out,'  said  I. 

'Why,  how  old  are  you?'  said  he. 

'  I  can't  tell,'  said  I. 

'Well,'  says  the  gentleman,  'now  you  have  this 
noney  won't  you  buy  some  clothes,  and  a  shirt  with 
ome  of  it  ?' 

'Yes,'  said  I,  I  would  buy  some  clothes. 

'  And  what  will  you  do  with  the  rest  ?' 

'  I  can't  tell,'  said  I,  and  cried. 

'What  do'st  cry  for,  Jack?'  said  he. 

'  I  am  afraid,'  said  I ;  and  cried  still. 

'What  art  afraid  of?' 

'  They  wdll  know  I  have  money.' 

'Well,  and  what  then?' 

'  Then  I  must  sleep  no  more  in  the  warm  glass- 
ouse,  and  I  shall  be  starved  with  cold.  They  will 
ike  away  my  money.' 

'  But  why  must  you  sleep  there  no  more  ?' 

Here  the  gentlemen  observed  to  one  another  how 


276  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

naturally  anxiety  and  perplexity  attend  those  that 
have  money.  '  I  warrant  you,'  says  the  clerk,  '  when 
this  poor  boy  had  no  money  he  slept  all  night  in  the 
straw,  or  on  the  warm  ashes  in  the  glass-house,  as 
soundly  and  as  void  of  care  as  it  would  be  possible 
for  any  creature  to  do ;  but  now,  as  soon  as  he  has 
gotten  money,  the  care  of  preserving  it  brings  tears 
into  his  eyes,  and  fear  into  his  heart.' 

They  asked  me  a  great  many  questions  more,  to 
which  I  answered  in  my  childish  way  as  well  as  I 
could,  but  so  as  pleased  them  well  enough ;  at  last  I 
was  going  away  with  a  heavy  pocket,  and  I  assure 
you  not  a  light  heart,  for  I  was  so  frighted  with 
having  so  much  money  that  I  knew  not  what  in  the 
earth  to  do  with  myself:  I  w^ent  away,  however,  and 
walked  a  little  way,  but  I  could  not  tell  what  to  do ; 
so,  after  rambling  two  hours  or  thereabout,  I  went 
back  again,  and  sat  down  at  the  gentleman's  door, 
and  there  I  cried  as  long  as  I  had  any  moisture  in 
my  head  to  make  tears  of,  but  never  knocked  at  the 
door. 

I  had  not  sat  long,  I  suppose,  but  somebody  be- 
longing to  the  family  got  knowledge  of  it,  and  a  maid 
came  and  talked  to  me,  but  I  said  little  to  her,  only 
cried  still ;  at  length  it  came  to  the  gentleman's  ears. 
As  for  the  merchant,  he  was  gone.  When  the  gentle- 
man heard  of  me,  he  called  me  in,  and  began  to  talk 
with  me  again,  and  asked  me  what  I  stayed  for  ? 


Colonel  Jack  277 

I  told  him  I  had  not  stayed  there  all  that  while, 
for  I  had  been  gone  a  great  while,  and  was  come  again. 

'  Well,'  says  he,  '  but  what  did  you  come  again  for  ?' 

*  I  can't  tell,'  says  I. 

'And  what  do  you  cry  so  for?'  said  he.  '  I  hope 
you  have  not  lost  your  money,  have  you?' 

No,  I  told  him,  I  had  not  lost  it  yet,  but  I  was 
afraid  I  should. 

'And  does  that  make  you  cry?'  says  he. 

I  told  him.  Yes,  for  I  knew  I  should  not  be  able 
to  keep  it,  but  they  would  cheat  me  of  it,  or  they 
would  kill  me,  and  take  it  away  from  me  too. 

'  They,'  says  he,  '  who  ?  what  sort  of  gangs  of 
people  art  thou  with  ? ' 

I  told  him  they  were  all  boys,  but  very  wicked 
boys ;  '  Thieves  and  pickpockets,'  said  I,  '  such  as 
stole  this  letter-case,  a  sad  pack,  I  can't  abide  them.' 

'Well,  Jack,'  said  he,  'what  shall  be  done  for 
thee  ?  Will  you  leave  it  with  me  ?  shall  I  keep  it  for 
you  ? ' 

'  Yes,'  said  I,  with  all  my  heart,  '  if  you  please.' 

'  Come,  then,'  says  he,  '  give  it  me ;  and  that  you 
bay  be  sure  that  I  have  it,  and  you  shall  have  it 
lonestly  again,  I'll  give  you  a  bill  for  it,  and  for  the 
nterest  of  it,  and  that  you  may  keep  safe  enough. 
>Tay,'  added  he,  '  and  if  you  lose  it,  or  anybody  takes 
t  from  you,  none  shall  receive  the  money  but  your- 
ielf,  or  any  part  of.it.' 


278  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

I  presently  pulled  out  all  the  money,  and  gave  it 
to  him,  only  keeping  about  15  s.  for  myself  to  buy 
some  clothes ;  and  thus  ended  the  conference  between 
us  on  the  first  occasion,  at  least  for  the  first  time. 
Having  thus  secured  my  money  to  my  full  satisfaction 
I  was  then  perfectly  easy,  and,  accordingly,  the  sad 
thoughts  that  afflicted  my  mind  before  began  to 
vanish  away. 

This  w^as  enough  to  let  any  one  see  how  all  the 
sorrows  and  anxieties  of  men's  lives  come  about ;  how 
they  rise  from  their  restless  pushing  at  getting  of 
money,  and  the  restless  cares  of  keeping  it  when 
they  have  got  it.  I  that  had  nothing,  and  had 
not  known  what  it  was  to  have  had  anything,  knew 
nothing  of  the  care  either  of  getting  or  of  keeping  it ; 
I  wanted  nothing,  who  wanted  everything ;  I  had  no 
care,  no  concern  about  where  I  should  get  my  victuals, 
or  how  I  should  lodge ;  I  knew  not  what  money  was, 
or  what  to  do  with  it ;  and  never  knew  what  it  was 
not  to  sleep  till  I  had  money  to  keep  and  was 
afraid  of  losing  it. 

I  had,  without  doubt,  an  opportunity  at  this  time, 
if  I  had  not  been  too  foolish,  and  too  much  a  child 
to  speak  for  myself;  I  had  an  opportunity,  I  say,  to 
have  got  into  his  service,  or  perhaps  to  be  under  some  1 
of  the  care  and  concern  of  these  gentlemen  ;  for  they 
seemed  to  be  very  fond  of  doing  something  for  me, 
and  were  surprised  at  the  innocence  of  my  talk  to 


Colonel  Jack  279 

them,  as  well  as  at  the  misery  (as  they  thought  it)  of 
my  condition. 

But  I  acted  indeed  like  a  child. ;  and  leaving  my 
money,  as  I  have  said,  I  never  went  near  them  for 
several  years  after.  What  course  I  took,  and  what 
befel  me  in  that  interval,  has  so  much  variety  in  it, 
and  carries  so  much  instruction  in  it,  that  it  requires 
an  account  of  it  by  itself 

The  first  happy  chance  that  offered  itself  to  me  in 
the  world  was  now  over ;  I  had  got  money,  but  I 
neither  knew  the  value  of  it  nor  the  use  of  it ;  the 
way  of  living  I  had  begun  was  so  natural  to  me  I 
had  no  notion  of  bettering  it ;  I  had  not  so  much  as 
any  desire  of  buying  me  any  clothes,  no,  not  so  much 
as  a  shirt,  and  much  less  had  I  any  thought  of  getting 
any  other  lodging  than  that  in  the  glass-house,  and 
loitering  about  the  streets,  as  I  had  done ;  for  I  knew 
no  good,  and  had  tasted  no  evil ;  that  is  to  say,  the 
life  I  had  led  being  not  evil  in  my  account. 

In  this  state  of  innocence  I  returned  to  my  really 
miserable  life,  so  it  was  in  itself,  and  was  only  not  so 
to  me,  because  I  did  not  understand  how  to  judge  of 
it,  and  had  known  no  better. 

My  comrade  that  gave  me  back  the  bills,  and 
who,  if  I  had  not  pressed  him,  designed  never  to 
have  restored  them,  never  asked  me  what  I  had 
given  me,  but  told  me  if  they  gave  me  anything  it 
should  be  my  own ;  for  as,  he  said,  he  would  not  run 


28o  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

the  venture  of  being  seen  in  the  restoring  them,  I 
deserved  the  reward  if  there  was  any  ;  neither  did  he 
trouble  his  head  with  inquiring  what  I  had,  or  whether 
I  had  anything  or  no ;  so  my  title  to  what  I  had  got 
was  clear. 

I  went  now  up  and  down  just  as  I  did  before  ;  I  had 
money  indeed  in  my  pocket,  but  I  let  nobody  know 
it ;  I  went  of  errands  cheerfully  as  before,  and  accepted 
of  what  anybody  gave  me,  with  as  much  thankfulness 
as  ever ;  the  only  difference  that  I  made  with  myself, 
was,  that  if  I  was  hungry,  and  nobody  employed  me, 
or  gave  me  anything  to  eat,  I  did  not  beg  from  door 
to  door,  as  I  did  at  first,  but  went  to  a  boiling-house, 
as  I  said  once  before,  and  got  a  mess  of  broth  and  a 
piece  of  bread,  price  a  half-penny ;  very  seldom  any 
meat,  or  if  I  treated  myself,  it  was  a  half-penny  worth 
of  cheese ;  all  which  expense  did  not  amount  to 
above  twopence  or  threepence  a  week ;  for,  contrary 
to  the  usage  of  the  rest  of  the  tribe,  I  was  extremely 
frugal,  and  I  had  not  disposed  of  any  of  the  guineas 
which  I  had  at  first ;  neither,  as  I  said  to  the  custom- 
house gentleman,  could  I  tell  what  a  guinea  was 
made  of,  or  what  it  was  worth. 

After  I  had  been  about  a  month  thus,  and  had 
done  nothing,  my  comrade,  as  I  called  him,  came  to 
me  one  morning ;  '  Colonel  Jack,'  says  he,  '  when 
shall  you  and  I  take  a  walk  again  ? '  '  When  you 
will,'  said  I.      '  Have  you  got  no  business  yet  ? '  says 


Colo?tel  Jack  2  8 1 

he.  '  No/  says  I ;  and  so  one  thing  bringing  in 
another,  he  told  me  I  was  a  fortunate  wretch,  and  he 
beheved  I  would  be  so  again  ;  but  that  he  must  make 
a  new  bargain  with  me  now ;  '  for,'  says  he,  '  Colonel, 
the  first  time  we  always  let  a'^  raw  brother  come  in 
for  full  share  to  encourage  him,  but  afterwards,  except 
it  be  when  he  puts  himself  forward  well,  and  runs 
equal  hazard,  he  stands  to  courtesy ;  but  as  we  are 
gentlemen,  we  always  do  very  honourable  by  one 
another ;  and  if  you  are  willing  to  trust  it,  or  leave  it 
to  me,  I  shall  do  handsomely  by  you,  that  you  may 
depend  upon.'  I  told  him  I  was  not  able  to  do 
anything,  that  was  certain,  for  I  did  not  understand 
it,  and  therefore  I  could  not  expect  to  get  anything, 
but  I  would  do  as  he  bade  me ;  so  we  walked  abroad 
together. 

We  went  no  more  to  the  Custom-house,  it  was  too 
bold  a  venture  ;  besides,  I  did  not  care  to  show  my- 
self again,  especially  with  him  in  company ;  but  we 
went  directly  to  the  Exchange,  and  we  hankered 
about  in  Castle-alley,  and  in  Swithin's-alley,  and  at 
the  coffee-house  doors.  It  was  a  very  unlucky  day, 
for  we  got  nothing  all  day  but  two  or  three  handker- 
chiefs, and  came  home  to  the  old  lodgings  at  the 
glass-house ;  nor  had  I  anything  to  eat  or  drink  all 
day,  but  a  piece  of  bread  which  he  gave  me,  and 
some  water  at  the  conduit  at  the  Exchange-gate.  So 
when  he  was  gone  from  me,  for  he  di|^jjQtHe  in  the 


V 


X^         Of   THE  ^ 

UNIVEBSITl 


282  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

glass-house  as  I  did,  I  went  to  my  old  broth-house 
for  my  usual  bait,  and  refreshed  myself,  and  the  next 
day  early  went  to  meet  him  again,  as  he  appointed  me. 

Being  early  in  the  morning,  he  took  his  walk  to 
Billingsgate,  where  it  seems  two  sorts  of  people  make 
a  great  crowd  as  soon  as  it  is  light,  and  at  that  time 
a-year,  rather  before  daylight ;  that  is  to  say,  crimps, 
and  the  masters  of  coal  ships,  who  they  call  collier- 
masters  ;  and,  secondly,  fishmongers,  fish-sellers,  and 
buyers  of  fish. 

It  was  the  first  of  these  people  that  he  had  his 
eye  upon.  So  he  gives  me  my  orders,  which  was 
thus:  'Go  you,'  says  he,  'into  all  the  alehouses,  as 
we  go  along,  and  observe  where  any  people  are  telling 
of  money ;  and  when  you  find  any,  come  and  tell  me.' 
So  he  stood  at  the  door,  and  I  went  into  the  houses. 
As  the  collier-masters  generally  sell  their  coals  at  the 
gate,  as  they  call  it,  so  they  generally  receive  their 
money  in  those  alehouses  ;  and  it  was  not  long  before 
I  brought  him  word  of  several.  Upon  this  he  went 
in,  and  made  his  observations,  but  found  nothing  to 
his  purpose  ;  at  length  I  brought  him  word  that  there 
was  a  man  in  such  a  house  who  had  received  a  great 
deal  of  money  of  somebody,  I  believed  of  several 
people,  and  that  it  lay  all  upon  the  table  in  heaps, 
and  he  was  very  busy  writing  down  the  sums,  and 
putting  it  up  in  several  bags.  'Is  he ? '  says  he,  ' I'll 
warrant  him  I  will  have  some  of  it ; '  and  in  he  goes. 


Colonel  Jack  283 

He  walks  up  and  down  the  house,  which  had  several 
open  tables  and  boxes  in  it,  and  he  listened  to  hear, 
if  he  could,  what  the  man's  name  was ;  and  he  heard 
somebody  call  him  Cullum,  or  some  such  name. 
Then  he  watches  his  opportunity,  and  steps  up  to 
him,  and  tells  him  a  long  story,  that  there  were  two 
gentlemen  at  the  Gun  tavern,  sent  him  to  inquire  for 
him,  and  to  tell  him  they  desired  to  speak  with  him. 

The  collier- master  had  his  money  lying  before 
him,  just  as  I  had  told  him,  and  had  two  or  three 
small  payments  of  money,  which  he  had  put  up  in 
little  black  dirty  bags,  and  lay  by  themselves  ;  and  as 
it  was  hardly  broad  day,  he  found  means,  in  deliver- 
ing his  message,  to  lay  his  hand  upon  one  of  those 
bags,  and  carry  it  off  perfectly  undiscovered. 

When  he  had  got  it,  he  came  out  to  me,  who 
stood  but  at  the  door ;  and  pulling  me  by  the  sleeve, 
'  Run,  Jack,'  says  he,  '  for  our  lives  ; '  and  away  he 
scours,  and  I  after  him,  never  resting,  or  scarce  look- 
ing about  me,  till  we  got  quite  up  into  Fenchurch- 
street,  through  Lime -street,  into  Leadenhall- street, 
down  St.  Mary-Axe,  to  London-wall,  then  through 
Bishopsgate-street,  and  down  Old  Bedlam  into  Moor- 
fields.  By  this  time  we  were  neither  of  us  able  to 
run  very  fast,  nor  need  we  have  gone  so  far,  for  I 
never  found  that  anybody  pursued  us.  When  we  got 
into  Moorfields,  and  began  to  take  breath,  I  asked 
him  what  it  was  frighted  him  so  ?     '  Fright  me,  you 


284  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

fool,'  says   he,  '  I   have  got  a  devihsh  great   bag  of 
money.'     '  A  bag  ! '  said  L     '  Ay,  ay,'  said  he,  '  let  us 
get  out  into  the  fields  where  nobody  can  see  us,  and 
I'll  show  it  you.'     So  away  he  had  me  through  Long- 
alley,  and   cross   Hog-lane,  and   HoUoway-lane,  into 
the  middle  of  the  great  field,  which,  since  that,  has 
been  called  the  Farthing  Pie -house  Fields.     There 
we  would  have  sat  down,  but  it  was  all  full  of  water ; 
so  we  went  on,  crossed  the  road  at  Anniseed  Cleer, 
and  went  into  the  field  where  now  the  great  hospital 
stands ;  and  finding  a  bye  place,  we  sat  down,  and  he 
pulls  out  the  bag.     '  Thou  art  a  lucky  boy.  Jack,'  says 
he,  '  thou  deservest  a  good  share  of  this  job  truly,  for 
it  is  all  along  of  thy  lucky  news.'     So  he  pours  it  all 
out  into  my  hat,  for,  as  I  told  you,  I  now  wore  a  hat. 
How  he  did  to  whip  away  such  a  bag  of  money 
from  any  man  that  was  awake  and  in  his  senses  I 
cannot   tell ;   but   there  was  a  great  deal   in  it,  and 
among   it  a  paper -full   by  itself      When   the   paper 
dropt  out  of  the  bag,  '  Hold,'  says  he,  '  that  is  gold  ! ' 
and  began  to  crow  and  hollow  hke  a  mad  boy.      But 
there    he   was   baulked,   for   it   was   a   paper   of   old 
thirteenpence  -  halfpenny    pieces,    half    and    quarter 
pieces,   with   ninepences,    and   fourpence-halfpennies, 
all  old  crooked  money,  Scotch  and  Irish  coin ;  so  he 
was  disappointed  in  that;   but  as  it  was,  there  was 
about  ;£"i7  or  ;^i8  in  the  bag,  as  I  understood  by 
him ;  for  I  could  not  tell  money,  not  I. 


Colonel  Jack  285 

Well,  he  parted  this  money  into  three ;  that  is  to 
say,  into  three  shares,  two  for  himself,  and  one  for 
me,  and  asked,  if  I  was  content  ?  I  told  him.  Yes,  I 
had  reason  to  be  contented ;  besides,  it  was  so  much 
money  added  to  that  I  had  left  of  his  former  adven- 
ture, that  I  knew  not  what  to  do  with  it,  or  with  my- 
self, while  I  had  so  much  about  me. 

This  was  a  most  exquisite  fellow  for  a  thief;  for 
he  had  the  greatest  dexterity  at  conveying  anything 
away,  that  he  scarce  ever  pitched  upon  anything  in 
his  eye  but  he  carried  it  off  with  his  hands,  and 
never,  that  I  know  of,  missed  his  aim,  or  was  caught 
in  the  fact. 

He  was  an  eminent  pickpocket,  and  very  dexterous 
at  ladies'  gold  watches ;  but  he  generally  pushed 
higher,  at  such  desperate  things  as  these ;  and  he 
came  off  the  cleanest,  and  with  the  greatest  success 
imaginable ;  and  it  was  in  these  kinds  of  the  wicked 
art  of  thieving  that  I  became  his  scholar. 

As  we  were  now  so  rich  he  would  not  let  me  lie 
any  longer  in  the  glass-house,  or  go  naked  and  ragged, 
as  I  had  done ;  but  obliged  me  to  buy  two  shirts,  a 
waistcoat,  and  a  great  coat ;  for  a  great  coat  was  more 
for  our  purpose  in  the  business  we  were  upon  than 
any  other.  So  I  clothed  myself  as  he  directed,  and 
he  took  me  a  lodging  in  the  same  house  with  him,  and 
we  lodged  together  in  a  little  garret  fit  for  our  quality. 

Soon  after  this  we  walked  out  again,  and  then  we 


286  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

tried  our  fortune  in  the  places  by  the  Exchange  a 
second  time.  Here  we  began  to  act  separately,  and 
I  undertook  to  walk  by  myself;  and  the  first  thing  I 
did  accurately  was  a  trick  I  played  that  required 
some  skill  for  a  new  beginner,  for  I  had  never  seen 
any  business  of  that  kind  done  before.  I  saw  two 
gentlemen  mighty  eager  in  talk,  and  one  pulled  out  a 
pocket-book  two  or  three  times,  and  then  slipt  it  into 
his  coat-pocket  again,  and  then  out  it  came  again, 
and  papers  were  taken  out,  and  others  were  put  in ; 
and  then  in  it  went  again,  and  so  several  times ;  the 
man  being  still  warmly  engaged  with  another  man, 
and  two  or  three  others  standing  hard  by  them.  The 
last  time  he  put  his  pocket-book  into  his  pocket,  he 
might  be  said  to  throw  it  in,  rather  than  put  it  in 
with  his  hand,  and  the  book  lay  end-way,  resting  upon 
some  other  book,  or  something  else  in  his  pocket ;  so 
that  it  did  not  go  quite  down,  but  one  corner  of  it 
was  seen  above  his  pocket. 

This  careless  way  of  men  putting  their  pocket- 
books  into  a  coat-pocket,  which  is  so  easily  dived  into 
by  the  least  boy  that  has  been  used  to  the  trade,  can 
never  be  too  much  blamed ;  the  gentlemen  are  in 
great  hurries,  their  heads  and  thoughts  entirely  taken 
up,  and  it  is  impossible  they  should  be  guarded  enough 
against  such  little  hawk-eyed  creatures  as  we  were  ; 
and,  therefore,  they  ought  either  never  to  put  their 
pocket-books  up  at   all,  or  to    put    them   up   more 


Colonel  Jack  287 

secure,  or  to  put  nothing  of  value  into  them.  I 
happened  to  be  just  opposite  to  this  gentleman  in 
that  they  call  Swithin's-alley ;  or  that  alley  rather 
which  is  between  Swithin's-alley  and  the  Exchange, 
just  by  a  passage  that  goes  out  of  the  alley  into  the 
Exchange ;  when  seeing  the  book  pass  and  repass 
into  the  pocket,  and  out  of  the  pocket  as  above,  it 
came  immediately  into  my  head,  certainly  I  might  get 
that  pocket-book  out  if  I  were  nimble,  and  I  warrant 
Will  would  have  it,  if  he  saw  it  go  and  come  to  and 
again  as  I  did ;  but  when  I  saw  it  hang  by  the  way, 
as  I  have  said  ;  '  Now  it  is  mine,'  said  I  to  myself,  and, 
crossing  the  alley,  I  brushed  smoothly,  but  closely,  by 
the  man,  with  my  hand  down  flat  to  my  own  side, 
and,  taking  hold  of  it  by  the  corner  that  appeared, 
the  book  came  so  light  into  my  hand,  it  was  impos- 
sible the  gentleman  should  feel  the  least  motion,  or 
anybody  else  see  me  take  it  away.  I  went  directly 
forward  into  the  broad  place  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Exchange,  then  scoured  down  Bartholomew-lane,  so 
into  Tokenhouse-yard,  into  the  alleys  which  pass 
through  from  thence  to  London -wall,  so  through 
Moorgate,  and  sat  down  on  the  grass  in  the  second 
of  the  quarters  of  Moorfields,  towards  the  middle 
field ;  which  was  the  place  that  Will  and  I  had  ap- 
pointed to  meet  at  if  either  of  us  got  any  booty. 
When  I  came  thither,  Will  was  not  come,  but  I  saw 
him  a  coming  in  about  half  an  hour. 


288  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

As  soon  as  Will  came  to  me,  I  asked  him  what 
booty  he  had  gotten?  He  looked  pale,  and,  as  I 
thought,  frighted;  but  he  returned,  'I  have  got 
nothing,  not  I ;  but,  you  lucky  young  dog,'  says  he, 
'  what  have  you  got  ?  Have  not  you  got  the  gentle- 
man's pocket-book  in  Swithin's-alley ? '  'Yes,'  says  I, 
and  laughed  at  him ;  '  why,  how  did  you  know  it  ? ' 
'  Know  it ! '  says  he,  '  why  the  gentleman  is  raving 
and  half  distracted ;  he  stamps  and  cries,  and  tears 
his  very  clothes ;  he  says  he  is  utterly  undone  and 
ruined,  and  the  folks  in  the  alley  say  there  is  I  know 
not  how  many  thousand  pounds  in  it ;  what  can  be 
in  it  ? '  says  Will ;  '  come,  let  us  see.' 

Well,  we  lay  close  in  the  grass  in  the  middle  of 
the  quarter,  so  that  nobody  minded  us ;  and  so  we 
opened  the  pocket-book,  and  there  was  a  great  many 
bills  and  notes  under  men's  hands ;  some  goldsmiths', 
and  some  belonging  to  insurance  offices,  as  they  call 
them,  and  the  like;  but  that  which  was  it  seems 
worth  all  the  rest  was  that  in  one  of  the  folds  of  the 
cover  of  the  book,  where  there  was  a  case  with  several 
partitions,  there  was  a  paper  full  of  loose  diamonds. 
The  man,  as  we  understood  afterward,  was  a  Jew,  who 
dealt  in  such  goods,  and  who  indeed  ought  to  have 
taken  more  care  of  the  keeping  of  them. 

Now  was  this  booty  too  great,  even  for  Will  him- 
self, to  manage ;  for  though  by  this  time  I  was  come 
to  understand  things  better  than  I  did  formerly,  when 


Colonel  Jack  289 

I  knew  not  what  belonged  to  money ;  yet  Will  was 
better  skilled  by  far  in  those  things  than  I.  But  this 
puzzled  him  too,  as  well  as  me.  Now  were  we  some- 
thing like  the  cock  in  the  fable ;  for  all  these  bills, 
and  I  think  there  was  one  bill  of  Sir  Henry  Furness's 
for  ^1200,  and  all  these  diamonds,  which  were  worth 
about  ^150,  as  they  said;  I  say,  all  these  things 
were  of  no  value  to  us,  one  little  purse  of  gold  would 
have  been  better  to  us  than  all  of  it.  '  But  come,' 
says  Will,  'let  us  look  over  the  bills  for  a  little  one.' 

We  looked  over  all  the  bills,  and,  among  them,  vv^e 
found  a  bill  under  a  man's  hand  for  ^^32  ;  'Come,' 
says  Will,  'let  us  go  and  inquire  where  this  man  lives.' 
So  he  went  into  the  city  again,  and  Will  went  to  the 
post-house,  and  asked  there  ;  they  told  him  he  lived 
at  Temple-bar:  'Well,'  says  Will,  'I  will  venture,  I'll 
go  and  receive  the  money ;  it  may  be  he  has  not  re- 
membered to  send  to  stop  the  payment  there.' 

But  it  came  into  his  thoughts  to  take  anothei 
course ;  '  Come,'  says  Will,  '  I'll  go  back  to  the  alley 
and  see  if  I  can  hear  anything  of  what  has  happened, 
for  I  believe  the  hurry  is  not  over  yet.  It  seems  the 
man  who  lost  the  book  was  carried  into  the  King's- 
head  tavern,  at  the  end  of  that  alley,  and  a  great 
crowd  was  about  the  door.' 

Away  goes  Will,  and  watches  and  waits  about  the 
place ;  and  then,  seeing  several  people  together,  for 
they  were  not  all  dispersed,  he  asks  one  or  two  what 

u 


290  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

was  the  matter ;  they  tell  him  a  long  story  of  ai 
gentleman  who  had  lost  his  pocket-book,  with  a  great 
bag  of  diamonds  in  it,  and  bills  for  a  great  many 
thousand  pounds,  and  I  know  not  what ;  and  that* 
they  had  been  just;  crying  it,  and  had  offered 
;^ioo  reward  to  any  one  who  would  discover  and 
restore  it.  | 

'I  wish,'  said  he,  to  one  of  them  that  parleyed 
with  him,  '  I  did  but  know  who  has  it,  I  don't  doubt 
but  I  could  help  him  to  it  again ;  does  he  remember 
nothing  of  anybody,  boy,  or  fellow,  that  was  near  him  ? 
if  he  could  but  describe  him,  it  might  do.'  Some-l 
body  that  overheard  him  was  so  forward  to  assist  the 
poor  gentleman  that  they  went  up  and  let  him  know 
what  a  young  fellow,  meaning  Will,  had  been  talking 
at  the  door ;  and  down  comes  another  gentleman 
from  him,  and,  taking  Will  aside,  asked  him  what  h^ 
had  said  about  it  ?  Will  was  a  grave  sort  of  a  youn^ 
man,  that,  though  he  was  an  old  soldier  at  the  trade 
had  yet  nothing  of  it  in  his  countenance ;  and  he 
answered  that  he  was  concerned  in  business  where 
great  many  of  the  gangs  of  little  pickpockets  haunted' 
and  if  he  had  but  the  least  description  of  the  persor* 
they  suspected  he  durst  say  he  could  find  him  out 
and  might  perhaps  get  the  things  again  for  him 
Upon  this  he  desired  him  to  go  up  with  him  to  thi; 
gentleman,  which  he  did  accordingly ;  and  there,  h 
said,  he  sat  leaning  his  head  back  to  the  chair,  pal    \ 


Colonel  Jack  291 

as  a  cloth ;  disconsolate  to  a  strange  degree,  and,  as 
Will  described  him,  just  like  one  under  a  sentence. 

fc  When  they  came  to  ask  him  whether  he  had  seen 
no  boy,  or  shabby  fellow,  lurking  near  where  he  stood, 
or  passing,  or  repassing,  and  the  like,  he  answered, 
'  No,  not  any ; '  neither  could  he  remember  that  any- 
body had  come  near  him.  'Then,'  said  Will,  'it  will 
be  very  hard,  if  not  impossible,  to  find  them  out. 
However,'  said  Will,  'if  you  think  it  worth  while,  I 
will  put  myself  among  those  rogues,  though,'  says  he, 
'  I  care  not  for  being  seen  among  them ;  but  I  will 
put  in  among  them,  and  if  it  be  in  any  of  those  gangs, 
it  is  ten  to  one  but  I  shall  hear  something  of  it.' 

They  asked  him  then,  if  he  had  heard  what  terms 
the  gentleman  had  offered  to  have  it  restored ;  he 
answered,  '  No  '  (though  he  had  been  told  at  the 
door);  they  answered,  'He  had  offered  ;^ioo.' 
'That  is  too  much,'  says  Will;  'but  if  you  please  to 
leave  it  to  me,  I  shall  either  get  it  for  you  for  less 
than  that,  or  not  be  able  to  get  it  for  you  at  all' 
Then  the  losing  gentleman  said  to  one  of  the  other, 
'Tell  him,  that  if  he  can  get  it  lower,  the  overplus 
shall  be  to  himself.'  William  said  he  would  be  very 
glad  to  do  the  gentleman  such  a  service,  and  would 
leave  the  reward  to  himself.  '  Well,  young  man,'  says 
one  of  the  gentlemen,  '  whatever  you  appoint  to  the 
young  artist  that  has  done  this  roguery  (for  I  warrant 

ihe  is  an  artist,  let  it  be  who  it  will),  he  shall  be  paid, 


292  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

if  it  be  within  the  ;^ioo,  and  the  gentleman  is  wilHng 
to  give  you  £,^0  besides  for  your  pains.' 

'  Truly,  sir,'  says  Will,  very  gravely,  '  it  was  by 
mere  chance,  that,  coming  by  the  door,  and  seeing 
the  crowd,  I  asked  what  the  matter  was  ?  but  if  I 
should  be  instrumental  to  get  the  unfortunate  gentle- 
man his  pocket-book,  and  the  things  in  it  again,  I 
shall  be  very  glad ;  nor  am  I  so  rich  neither,  sir, 
but  ^50  is  very  well  worth  my  while  too.'  Then 
he  took  directions  who  to  come  to,  and  who  to 
give  his  account  to  if  he  learned  anything,  and 
the  like. 

Will  stayed  so  long,  that,  as  he  and  I  agreed,  I 
went  home,  and  he  did  not  come  to  me  till  night ; 
for  we  had  considered  before  that  it  would  not  be 
proper  to  come  from  them  directly  to  me,  lest  they 
should  follow  him  and  apprehend  me.  If  he  had 
made  no  advances  towards  a  treaty,  he  would  have 
come  back  in  half  an  hour,  as  we  agreed  ;  but  staying 
late,  we  met  at  our  night  rendezvous,  which  was  in 
Rosemary-lane. 

When  he  came  he  gave  an  account  of  all  the  dis- 
course, and  particularly  what  a  consternation  the 
gentleman  was  in  who  lost  the  pocket-book,  and  that 
he  did  not  doubt  but  we  should  get  a  good  round[ 
sum  for  the  recovery  of  it. 

We  consulted  all  the  evening  about  it,  and  con 
eluded  he  should  let  them  hear  nothing  of  them  the 


%■ 


Colonel  Jack  293 

next  day  at  all ;  and  that  the  third  day  he  should  go, 
but  should  make  no  discovery,  only  that  he  had  got 
a  scent  of  it,  and  that  he  believed  he  should  have  it, 
and  make  it  appear  as  difficult  as  possible,  and  to 
start  as  many  objections  as  he  could.  Accordingly, 
the  third  day  after  he  met  with  the  gentleman,  who 
he  found  had  been  uneasy  at  his  long  stay,  and  told 
him  they  were  afraid  that  he  only  flattered  them  to 
get  from  them ;  and  that  they  had  been  too  easy  in 
letting  him  go  without  a  further  examination. 

He  took  upon  him  to  be  very  grave  with  them, 
and  told  them  that  if  that  was  what  he  was  like  to 
have  for  being  so  free  as  to  tell  them  he  thought  he 
might  serve  them  they  might  see  that  they  had 
wronged  him,  and  were  mistaken  by  his  coming  again 
to  them ;  that  if  they  thought  they  could  do  anything 
by  examining  him,  they  might  go  about  it,  if  they 
pleased,  now ;  that  all  he  had  to  say  to  them  was, 
that  he  knew  where  some  of  the  young  rogues 
haunted,  who  were  famous  for  such  things ;  and  that 
by  some  inquiries,  offering  them  money,  and  the  like, 
he  believed  they  would  be  brought  to  betray  one 
another,  and  that  so  he  might  pick  it  out  for  them  ; 
and  this  he  would  say  before  a  justice  of  peace,  if 
they  thought  fit ;  and  then  all  that  he  had  to  say 
further  to  them  was,  to  tell  them  he  had  lost  a  day 
or  two  in  their  service,  and  had  got  nothing,  but  to 
be  suspected  for  his  pains ;   and  that  after  that  he 


294  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

had  done,  and   they  might  seek  their  goods  where 
they  could  find  them. 

They  began  to  listen  a  little  upon  that,  and  asked 
him  if  he  could  give  them  any  hopes  of  recovering 
their  loss ;  he  told  them  that  he  was  not  afraid  to 
tell  them  that  he  believed  he  had  heard  some  news  of 
them,  and  that  what  he  had  done  had  prevented  all 
the  bills  being  burnt,  book  and  all ;  but  that  now  he 
ought  not  to  be  asked  any  more  questions  till  they 
should  be  pleased  to  answer  him  a  question  or  two. 
They  told  him  they  would  give  him  any  satisfaction 
they  could,  and  bid  him  tell  what  he  desired. 

'Why,  sir,'  says  he,  'how  can  you  expect  any  thief 
that  had  robbed  you  to  such  a  considerable  value  as 
this,  would  come  and  put  himself  into  your  hands, 
confess  he  had  your  goods,  and  restore  them  to  you, 
if  you  do  not  give  them  assurance  that  you  will  not 
only  give  them  the  reward  you  agreed  to,  but  also 
give  assurance  that  they  shall  not  be  stopped,  que? 
tioned,  or  called  to  account  before  a  magistrate  ? '       ;| 

They  said  they  would  give  all  possible  assurance 
of  it.  '  Nay,'  says  he,  '  I  do  not  know  what  assurance 
you  are  able  to  give ;  for  when  a  poor  fellow  is  in 
your  clutches,  and  has  shown  you  your  goods,  you 
may  seize  upon  him  for  a  thief,  and  it  is  plain  he 
must  be  so  ;  then  you  go,  take  away  your  goods,  send 
him  to  prison,  and  what  amends  can  he  have  of  you 
afterward  ? '  v 


'-» 


Colonel  Jack  295 

They  were  entirely  confounded  with  the  difficulty ; 
they  asked  him  to  try  if  he  could  get  the  things  into 
his  hands,  and  they  would  pay  him  the  money  before 
he  let  them  go  out  of  his  hand,  and  he  should  go 
away  half  an  hour  before  they  went  out  of  the  room. 

'  No,  gentlemen,'  says  he,  '  that  won't  do  now.  If 
you  had  talked  so  before  you  had  talked  of  appre- 
hending me  for  nothing,  I  should  have  taken  your 
word ;  but  now  it  is  plain  you  have  had  such  a 
thought  in  your  heads,  and  how  can  I,  or  any  one 
else,  be  assured  of  safety  ? ' 

Well,  they  thought  of  a  great  many  particulars, 
but  nothing  would  do;  at  length  the  other  people 
who  were  present  put  in  that  they  should  give 
security  to  him,  by  a  bond  of  ;^iooo,  that  they  would 
not  give  the  person  any  trouble  whatsoever.  He 
pretended  they  could  not  be  bound,  nor  could  their 
obligation  be  of  any  value,  and  that  their  own  goods 
being  once  seen,  they  might  seize  them ;  '  and  what 
would  it  signify,'  said  he,  '  to  put  a  poor  pickpocket  to 
sue  for  his  reward  ? '  They  could  not  tell  what  to  say  : 
but  told  him,  that  he  should  take  the  things  of  the 
boy,  if  it  was  a  boy ;  and  they  would  be  bound  to 
pay  him  the  money  promised.  He  laughed  at  them, 
and  said,  '  No,  gentlemen,  as  I  am  not  the  thief,  so  I 
shall  be  very  loath  to  put  myself  in  the  thief's  stead, 
and  lie  at  your  mercy.' 

They  told  him  they  knew  not  what  to  do  then, 


296  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

and  that  it  would  be  very  hard  he  would  not  trust 
them  at  all.  He  said,  he  was  very  willing  to  trust 
them,  and  to  serve  them ;  but  that  it  would  be  very 
hard  to  be  ruined  and  charged  with  the  theft,  for  en- 
deavouring to  serve  them. 

They  then  offered  to  give  it  him  under  their  hands 
that  they  did  not  in  the  least  suspect  him ;  that  they 
would  never  charge  him  with  anything  about  it ;  that 
they  acknowledged  he  went  about  to  inquire  after  the 
goods  at  their  request ;  and  that  if  he  produced  them, 
they  would  pay  him  so  much  money,  at  or  before  the 
delivery  of  them,  without  obliging  him  to  name  or 
produce  that  person  he  had  them  from. 

Upon  this  writing,  signed  by  three  gentlemen  who 
were  present,  and  by  the  person  in  particular  who 
lost  the  things,  the  young  gentleman  told  them  he 
would  go  and  do  his  utmost  to  get  the  pocket-book, 
and  all  that  was  in  it. 

Then  he  desired  that  they  would  in  writing,  before- 
hand, give  him  a  particular  of  all  the  several  things 
that  were  in  the  book  ;  that  he  might  not  have  it 
said,  when  he  produced  it,  that  there  was  not  all ; 
and  he  would  have  the  said  writing  sealed  up,  and  he 
would  make  the  book  be  sealed  up  when  it  was  given 
to  him.  This  they  agreed  to ;  and  the  gentleman 
accordingly  drew  up  a  particular  of  all  the  bills  that 
he  remembered,  as  he  said,  was  in  the  book ;  and 
also  of  the  diamonds,  as  follows  : 


Colonel  Jack  297 

One  bill  under  Sir  Henry  Furness's  hand  for 
^1200. 

One  bill  under  Sir  Charles  Duncomb's  hand  for 
^800,  ;£'25o  indorsed  off. — ^550. 

One  bill  under  the  hand  of  J.  Tassel,  goldsmith, 
^165. 

One  bill  of  Sir  Francis  Child,  £,z^' 

One  bill  of  one  Stewart,  that  kept  a  wager-office 
and  insurance,  ^350. 

A  paper  containing  thirty-seven  loose  diamonds, 
value  about  ;i^2  5o. 

A  little  paper,  containing  three  large  rough  dia- 
monds, and  one  large  one  polished,   and  cut,  value 

^185. 

For  all  these  things  they  promised,  first,  to  give 

him  whatever  he  agreed  with  the  thief  to  give  him, 

not  exceeding  ^£^50,  and  to  give  him  J^^o  more  for 

himself  for  procuring  them. 

Now  he  had  his  cue,  and  now  he  came  to  me, 
and  told  me  honestly  the  whole  story  as  above ;  so  I 
delivered  him  the  book,  and  he  told  me  that  he 
thouEjht  it  was  reasonable  we  should  take  the  full 
sum  ;  because  he  would  seem  to  have  done  them 
some  service,  and  so  make  them  the  easier.  All  this 
I  agreed  to ;  so  he  w^ent  the  next  day  to  the  place 
and  the  gentlemen  met  him  very  punctually. 

He  told  them  at  the  first  word  he  had  done  their 
work,   and,   as   he   hoped,   to   their   mind ;  and   told 


298  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

them,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  diamonds,  he  could 
have  got  all  for  ;£io,  but  that  the  diamonds  had 
shone  so  bright  in  the  boy's  imagination  that  he  talked 
of  running  away  to  France  or  Holland,  and  living  there 
all  his  days  like  a  gentleman ;  at  which  they  laughed. 
'  However,  gentlemen,'  said  he,  '  here  is  the  book ; ' 
and  so  pulled  it  out,  wrapt  up  in  a  dirty  piece  of  a 
coloured  handkerchief,  as  black  as  the  street  could 
make  it,  and  sealed  with  a  piece  of  sorry  wax,  and 
the  impression  of  a  farthing  for  a  seal. 

Upon  this,  the  note  being  also  unsealed,  at  the 
same  time  he  pulled  open  the  dirty  rag,  and  showed 
the  gentleman  his  pocket-book ;  at  which  he  was  so 
over-surprised  with  joy,  notwithstanding  all  the  pre- 
paratory discourse,  that  he  was  fain  to  call  for  a  glass 
of  wine  or  brandy  to  drink,  to  keep  him  from  fainting. 

The  book  being  opened,  the  paper  of  diamonds 
was  first  taken  out,  and  there  they  w^ere  every  one, 
only  the  little  paper  was  by  itself;  and  the  rough 
diamonds  that  were  in  it  were  loose  among  the  rest ; 
but  he  owned  they  were  all  there  safe. 

Then  the  bills  were  called  over,  one  by  one,  and 
they  found  one  bill  for  ;£8o  more  than  the  account 
mentioned ;  besides  several  papers  which  were  not  for 
money,  though  of  consequence  to  the  gentleman,  and 
he  acknowledged  that  all  was  very  honestly  returned ; 
'And  now,  young  man,'  said  they,  'you  shall  see  we 
will  deal  as  honestly  by  you ; '   and  so,  in  the  first 


Colonel  Jack  299 

place,  they  gave  him  ;^  50  for  himself,  and  then  they 
told  out  the  £,^0  for  me. 

He  took  the  £,^0  for  himself,  and  put  it  up  in  his 
pocket,  wrapping  it  in  paper,  it  being  all  in  gold  : 
then  he  began  to  tell  over  the  other  ;£"  50  ;  but  when 
he  had  told  out  ^30,  '  Hold,  gentlemen,'  said  he,  'as 
I  have  acted  fairly  for  you,  so  you  shall  have  no 
reason  to  say  I  do  not  do  so  to  the  end.  I  have 
taken  ;£^3o,  and  for  so  much  I  agreed  with  the  boy; 
and  so  there  is  ^20  of  your  money  again.' 

They  stood  looking  one  at  another  a  good  while, 
as  surprised  at  the  honesty  of  it ;  for  till  that  time 
they  were  not  quite  without  a  secret  suspicion  that  he 
was  the  thief,  but  that  piece  of  policy  cleared  up  his 
reputation  to  them.  The  gentleman  that  had  got  his 
bills  said  softly  to  one  of  them,  '  Give  it  him  all ; ' 
but  the  other  said  (softly  too),  '  No,  no,  as  long  as  he 
has  got  it  abated,  and  is  satisfied  with  the  £,^0  you 
have  given  him,  'tis  very  well,  let  it  go  as  it  is.'  This 
was  not  spoke  so  softly  but  he  heard  it,  and  said, 
'  No,'  too  ;  '  I  am  very  w^ell  satisfied,  I  am  glad  I 
have  got  them  for  you ; '  and  so  they  began  to  part. 

But  just  before  they  were  going  away  one  of  the 
gentlemen  said  to  him,  '  Young  man,  come,  you  see 
we  are  just  to  you,  and  have  done  fairly,  as  you  have 
also,  and  we  will  not  desire  you  to  tell  us  who  this 
cunning  fellow  is  that  got  such  a  prize  from  this 
gentleman  ;  but  as  you  have  talked  with  him,  pr'ythee. 


300  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

can  you  tell  us  nothing  of  how  he  did  it,  that  we  may- 
beware  of  such  sparks  again  ?  ' 

'  Sir,'  says  Will,  '  when  I  shall  tell  you  what  they 
say,  and  how  the  particular  case  stood,  the  gentleman 
would  blame  himself  more  than  anybody  else,  or  as 
much  at  least.  The  young  rogue  that  catched  this 
prize  was  out,  it  seems,  with  a  comrade,  who  is  a 
nimble  experienced  pickpocket  as  most  in  London, 
but  at  that  time  the  artist  was  somewhere  at  a  dis- 
tance, and  this  boy  never  had  picked  a  pocket  in  his 
life  before ;  but,  he  says,  he  stood  over  against  the 
passage  into  the  Exchange,  on  the  east  side,  and  the 
gentleman  stood  just  by  the  passage ;  that  he  was 
very  earnest  in  talking  with  some  other  gentleman, 
and  often  pulled  out  this  book  and  opened  it,  and 
took  papers  out,  and  put  others  in,  and  returned  it 
into  his  coat-pocket ;  that  the  last  time  it  hitched  at 
the  pocket-hole,  or  stopt  at  something  that  was  in  the 
pocket,  and  hung  a  little  out,  which  the  boy,  who 
had  watched  it  a  good  while,  perceiving,  he  passes 
by  close  to  the  gentleman,  and  carried  it  smoothly 
off,  without  the  gentleman's  perceiving  it  at  all,' 

He  went  on ;  and  said,  '  'Tis  very  strange  gentle- 
men should  put  pocket-books  which  have  such  things 
in  them  into  those  loose  pockets,  and  in  so  careless 
a  manner.'  'That's  very  true,'  says  the  gentleman; 
and  so,  with  some  other  discourse  of  no  great  signifi- 
cation, he  came  away  to  me. 


Colonel  Jack  301 

{Jack  returning  from  Virginia^  whither  he  has  been 
transported^  marries  a  wife  under  evil  stars  (^Defoe's 
heroes  a?id  heroines,  though  they  marry  very  much,  are 
seldom  forttmate,  Jack  least  of  all),  and  his  wife,  after 
very  ill  behaviour,  leaves  him.) 

I  was  extremely  satisfied  with  this  proceeding, 
and  took  care  to  let  her  hear  of  it,  though  I  gave 
no  answer  at  all  to  her  letter ;  and  as  I  had  taken 
care  before,  that  whenever  she  played  such  a  prank 
as  this  she  should  not  be  able  to  carry  much  with 
her,  so,  after  she  was  gone,  I  immediately  broke  up 
housekeeping,  sold  my  furniture  by  public  outcry, 
and  in  it  everything  in  particular  that  was  her  own, 
and  set  a  bill  upon  my  door,  giving  her  to  understand 
by  it  that  she  had  passed  the  Rubicon ;  that  as  she 
had  taken  such  a  step  of  her  own  accord,  so  there 
was  no  room  left  her  ever  to  think  of  coming  back 
again. 

This  was  what  any  one  may  believe  I  should  not 
have  done,  if  I  had  seen  any  room  for  a  reformation ; 
but  she  had  given  me  such  testimonies  of  a  mind 
alienated  from  her  husband,  in  particular  espousing 
her  own  unsufferable  levity,  that  there  was  indeed  no 
possibility  of  our  coming  afterwards  to  any  terms 
again. 

However,  I  kept  a  couple  of  trusty  agents  so 
near  her  that  I  failed  not  to  have  a  full  account  of 


302  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

her  conduct,  though  I  never  let  her  know  anything 

of  me  but  that  I  was  gone  over  to  France  ;  as  to 

her  bills  which  she  said  she  would  draw  upon  me, 

she  was  as  good  as  her  word  in  drawing  one  of  ;^3o, 

which  I  refused  to  accept,  and  never  gave  her  leave 

to  trouble  me  with  another. 

*  -A^  *  *  *  * 

I  lived  retired,  because  I  knew  she  had  contracted 
debts  which  I  should  be  obliged  to  pay,  and  I  was 
resolved  to  be  gone  out  of  her  reach  with  what 
speed  I  could;  but  it  was  necessary  that  I  should 
stay  till  the  Virginia  fleet  came  in,  because  I  looked 
for  at  least  three  hundred  hogsheads  of  tobacco  from 
thence,  which  I  knew  would  heal  all  my  breaches ; 
for  indeed  the  extravagance  of  three  years  with  this 
lady  had  sunk  me  most  effectually,  even  far  beyond 
her  own  fortune,  which  was  considerable,  though  not 
quite  ^1500,  as  she  had  called  it. 

But  all  the  mischiefs  I  met  with  on  account  of 
this  match  were  not  over  yet ;  for  when  I  had  been 
parted  with  her  about  three  months,  and  had  refused 
to  accept  her  bill  of  ^£"30  which  I  mentioned  above, 
though  I  was  removed  from  my  first  lodgings  too, 
and  thought  I  had  effectually  secured  myself  from 
being  found  out,  yet  there  came  a  gentleman  well 
dressed  to  my  lodgings  one  day,  and  was  let  in 
before  I  knew  of  it,  or  else  I  should  scarce  have 
admitted  him. 


Colonel  Jack  303 

He  was  led  into  a  parlour,  and  I  came  down  to 
him  in  my  gown  and  slippers ;  when  I  came  into  the 
room,  he  called  me  as  familiarly  by  my  name  as  if 
he  had  known  me  twenty  years,  and  pulling  out  a 
pocket-book,  he  shows  me  a  bill  upon  me,  drawn  by 
my  wife,  which  was  the  same  bill  for  ;2^3o  that  I  had 
refused  before. 

'Sir,'  says  I,  'this  bill  has  been  presented  before, 
and  I  gave  my  answer  to  it  then.' 

'  Answer,  sir  ! '  says  he,  with  a  kind  of  jeering, 
taunting  air ;  'I  do  not  understand  what  you  mean 
by  an  answer ;  it  is  not  a  question,  sir,  it  is  a  bill  to 
be  paid.' 

' Well,  sir,'  says  I,  'it  is  a  bill,  I  know  that,  and 
I  gave  my  answer  to  it  before.' 

'  Sir,  sir,'  says  he,  very  saucily,  '  your  answer  ! 
there  is  no  answer  to  a  bill,  it  must  be  paid ;  bills 
are  to  be  paid,  not  to  be  answered ;  they  say  you  are 
a  merchant,  sir ;  merchants  always  pay  their  bills.' 

I  began  to  be  angry  too  a  little,  but  I  did  not 
like  my  man,  for  I  found  he  began  to  be  quarrel- 
some ;  however,  I  said,  '  Sir,  I  perceive  you  are  not 
much  used  to  presenting  bills ;  sir,  a  bill  is  always 
first  presented,  and  presenting  is  a  question,  it  is 
asking  if  I  will  accept  or  pay  the  bill,  and  then 
whether  I  say  Yes  or  No,  it  is  an  answer  one  way  or 
other ;  after  it  is  accepted,  it  indeed  requires  no 
more  answer  but  payment  when  it  is  due  j   if  you 


304  Defoe  s  Minor  Novels 

please  to  inform  yourself  this  is  the  usage  which  all 
merchants,  or  tradesmen  of  any  kind,  who  have  bills 
drawn  upon  them,  act  by.' 

'Well,  sir,'  says  he,  'and  what  then?  What  is 
this  to  the  paying  me  the  ;^3o?' 

'  Why,  sir,'  says  I,  '  it  is  this  to  it,  that  I  told  the 
person  that  brought  it  I  should  not  pay  it.' 

'Not  pay  it  !'  says  he,  'but  you  shall  pay  it;  ay, 
ay,  you  will  pay  it.' 

'  She  that  draws  it  has  no  reason  to  draw  any 
bills  upon  me,  I  am  sure,'  said  I;  'and  I  shall  pay 
no  bills  she  draws,  I  assure  you.' 

Upon  this  he  turns  short  upon  me ;  '  Sir,  she 
that  draws  this  bill  is  a  person  of  too  much  honour 
to  draw  any  bill  without  reason,  and  it  is  an  affront 
to  say  so  of  her,  and  I  shall  expect  satisfaction  of 
you  for  that  by  itself;  but  first  the  bill,  sir,  the 
bill,  you  must  pay  the  bill,  sir.' 

I  returned  as  short ;  '  Sir,  I  affront  nobody,  I 
know  the  person  as  well  as  you  I  hope,  and  what 
I  have  said  of  her  is  no  affront ;  she  can  have  no 
reason  to  draw  bills  upon  me,  for  I  owe  her  nothing.' 

I  omit  intermingling  the  oaths  he  laced  his  speech 
with,  as  too  foul  for  my  paper ;  but  he  told  me  he 
would  make  me  know  she  had  friends  to  stand  by 
her,  that  I  had  abused  her,  and  he  would  let  me 
know  it,  and  do  her  justice ;  but  first,  I  must  pay 
his  bill. 


Colonel  Jack  30 


o'-^:) 


I  answered  in  short,  I  would  not  pay  the  bill, 
nor  any  bills  she  should  draw. 

With  that  he  steps  to  the  door  and  shuts  it,  and 
swore  by  G — d  he  would  make  me  pay  the  bill 
before  we  parted ;  and  laid  his  hand  upon  his 
sword,  but  did  not  draw  it  out. 

I  confess  I  was  frightened  to  the  last  degree,  for 
I  had  no  sword,  and  if  I  had,  I  must  own  that, 
though  I  had  learned  a  great  many  good  things  in 
France  to  make  me  look  like  a  gentleman,  I  had 
forgot  the  main  article  of  learning,  how  to  use  a 
sword,  a  thing  so  universally  practised  there ;  and 
to  say  more,  I  had  been  perfectly  unacquainted  with 
quarrels  of  this  nature ;  so  that  I  was  perfectly 
surprised  when  he  shut  the  door,  and  knew  not 
what  to  say  or  do. 

However,  as  it  happened,  the  people  of  the  house 
hearing  us  pretty  loud,  came  near  the  door,  and 
made  a  noise  in  the  entry,  to  let  me  know  they  were 
at  hand ;  and  one  of  the  servants  going  to  open  the 
door,  and  finding  it  locked,  called  out  to  me,  '  Sir, 
for  God's  sake  open  the  door !  what  is  the  matter  ? 
shall  w^e  fetch  a  constable?'  I  made  no  answer,  but 
it  gave  me  courage,  so  I  sat  down  composed  in  one 
of  the  chairs,  and  said  to  him  j  '  Sir,  this  is  not  the 
way  to  make  me  pay  the  bill ;  you  had  much 
better  be  easy,  and  take  your  satisfaction  another 
way. ' 

X 


3o6  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

He  understood  me  of  fighting,  which  upon  my 
word  was  not  in  my  thoughts,  but  I  meant  that  he 
had  better  take  his  course  at  law. 

'  With  all  my  heart,'  says  he ;  '  they  say  you  are 
a  gentleman,  and  they  call  you  colonel ;  now,  if  you 
are  a  gentleman,  I  accept  your  challenge,  sir,  and 
if  you  will  walk  out  with  me,  I  will  take  it  for  full 
payment  of  the  bill,  and  will  decide  it  as  gentlemen 
ought  to  do.' 

'  I  challenge  you,  sir  !'  said  I ;  'not  I,  I  made  no 
challenge ;  I  said,  this  is  not  the  way  to  make  me 
pay  a  bill  that  I  have  not  accepted ;  that  is,  that  you 
had  better  seek  your  satisfaction  at  law.' 

'  Law  ! '  says  he,  '  law  !  gentleman's  law  is  my 
law;  in  short,  sir,  you  shall  pay  me  or  fight  me  ;'  and 
then,  as  if  he  had  mistaken,  he  turns  short  upon  me, 
'  Nay,'  says  he,  '  you  shall  both  fight  me  and  pay  me, 
for  I  will  maintain  her  honour;'  and  in  saying  this 
he  bestowed  about  six  or  seven  dammes  and  oaths 
by  way  of  parenthesis. 

This  interval  delivered  me  effectually,  for  just  at 
the  word  'fight  me,  for  I  will  maintain  her  honour,' 
the  maid  had  brought  in  a  constable,  with  three  or 
four  neighbours  to  assist  him. 

He  heard  them  come  in,  and  began  to  be  a  little 
in  a  rage,  and  asked  me  if  I  intended  to  mob  him 
instead  of  paying ;  and  laying  his  hand  on  his  sword, 
told  me  if  any  man  offered  to  break  in  upon  him 


Colonel  Jack  307 

he  would  run  me  through  the  first  moment,  that  he 
might  have  the  fewer  to  deal  with  afterwards. 

I  told  him  he  knew  I  had  called  for  no  help 
(beheving  he  could  not  be  in  earnest  in  what  he  had 
said),  and  that,  if  anybody  attempted  to  come  in 
upon  us,  it  was  to  prevent  the  mischief  he  threatened, 
and  which  he  might  see  I  had  no  weapons  to  resist. 

Upon  this  the  constable  called,  and  charged  us 
both  in  the  king's  name  to  open  the  door  ;  I  was 
sitting  in  a  chair,  and  offered  to  rise ;  he  made  a 
motion  as  if  he  would  draw,  upon  which  I  sat  down 
again,  and  the  door  not  being  opened,  the  constable 
set  his  foot  against  it  and  came  in. 

'Well,  sir,'  says  my  gentleman,  'and  what  now? 
what  is  your  business  here?'  'Nay,  sir,'  says  the 
constable,  '  you  see  my  business,  I  am  a  peace-officer, 
all  I  have  to  do  is  to  keep  the  peace,  and  I  find  the 
people  of  the  house  frightened  for  fear  of  mischief 
between  you,  and  they  have  fetched  me  to  prevent 
it'  'What  mischief  have  they  supposed  you  should 
find  ? '  says  he.  '  I  suppose,'  says  the  constable, 
'  they  were  afraid  you  should  fight.'  '  That  is, 
because  they  did  not  know  this  fellow  here ;  he 
never  fights ;  they  call  him  colonel,'  says  he ;  'I 
suppose  he  might  be  born  a  colonel,  for  I  dare  say 
he  was  born  a  coward ;  he  never  fights,  he  dares  not 
see  a  man ;  if  he  would  have  fought,  he  would  have 
walked  out  with  me,  but  he  scorns  to  be  brave ;  they 


3o8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

would  never  have  talked  to  you  of  fighting  if  they 
had  known  him  :  I  tell  you,  Mr.  Constable,  he  is  a 
coward,  and  a  coward  is  a  rascal ;'  and  with  that  he 
came  to  me,  and  stroked  his  finger  down  my  nose 
pretty  hard,  and  laughed  and  mocked  most  horridly, 
as  if  I  was  a  coward.  Now,  for  aught  I  knew,  it 
might  be  true,  but  I  was  now  what  they  call  a 
coward  made  desperate,  which  is  one  of  the  worst 
of  men  in  the  world  to  encounter  with,  for  being 
in  a  fury,  I  threw  my  head  in  his  face,  and  closing 
with  him,  threw  him  fairly  on  his  back  by  main 
strength,  and  had  not  the  constable  stepped  in  and 
taken  me  off,  I  had  certainly  stamped  him  to  death 
with  my  feet,  for  my  blood  was  now  all  in  a  flame, 
and  the  people  of  the  house  were  frightened  now  as 
much  the  other  way,  lest  I  should  kill  him,  though  I 
had  no  weapon  at  all  in  my  hand. 

The  constable  too  reproved  me  in  his  turn ;  but 
I  said  to  him,  '  Mr.  Constable,  do  not  you  think  I 
am  sufficiently  provoked  ?  can  any  man  bear  such 
things  as  these  ?  I  desire  to  know  who  this  man  is, 
and  who  sent  him  hither?' 

'I  am,'  says  he,  'a  gentleman,  and  come  with  a 
bill  to  him  for  money,  and  he  refuses  to  pay  it.' 
'  Well,'  says  the  constable  very  prudently,  '  that  is 
none  of  my  business,  I  am  no  justice  of  the  peace 
to  hear  the  cause  ;  be  that  among  yourselves,  but 
keep  your  hands   off  one  another,   and    that  is   as 


Colo7tel  Jack  309 

much  as  I  desire ;  and  therefore,  sir,'  says  the  con- 
stable to  him,  'if  I  may  advise  you,  seeing  he  will 
not  pay  the  bill,  and  that  must  be  decided  between 
you  as  the  law  directs,  I  would  have  you  leave  it  for 
the  present,  and  go  quietly  away.' 

He  made  many  impertinent  harangues  about  the 
bill,  and  insisted  that  it  was  drawn  by  my  own  wife ; 

I    said    angrily,    '  Then   it  was   drawn   by  a ; ' 

he  bullied  me  upon  that,  told  me  I  durst  not  tell 
him  so  anywhere  else ;  so  I  answered,  I  would  very 

soon  publish  her  for  a to  all  the  world,  and 

cry  her  down  ;  and  thus  we  scolded  for  near  half  an 
hour,  for  I  took  courage  when  the  constable  v;as 
there,  for  I  knew  that  he  would  keep  us  from 
fighting,  which  indeed  I  had  no  mind  to,  and  so  at 
length  I  got  rid  of  him. 

I  was  heartily  vexed  at  this  rencounter,  and  the 
more,  because  I  had  been  found  out  in  my  lodging, 
which  I  thought  I  had  effectually  concealed ;  how- 
ever, I  resolved  to  remove  the  next  day,  and  in  the 
meantime  I  kept  within  doors  all  that  day  till  the 
evening,  and  then  I  went  out  in  order  not  to  return 
thither  any  more. 

Being  come  out  into  Gracechurch-street,  I  observed 
a  man  follow  me,  with  one  of  his  legs  tied  up  in  a 
string,  and  hopping  along  with  the  other,  and  two 
crutches ;  he  begged  for  a  farthing,  but  I  inclining 
not   to   give   him   anything,   the   fellow  followed   me 


3IO  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

still,  till  I  came  to  a  court,  when  I  answered  hastily 
to  him,  '  I  have  nothing  for  you  !  Pray  do  not  be 
so  troublesome !  '  with  which  words  he  knocked  me 
down  with  his  crutches. 

Being  stunned  with  the  blow,  I  knew  nothing 
what  was  done  to  me  afterwards ;  but  coming  to 
myself  again,  I  found  I  was  wounded  very  frightfully 
in  several  places,  and  that  among  the  rest  my  nose 
was  slit  upwards,  one  of  my  ears  almost  cut  off,  and 
a  great  cut  with  a  sword  on  the  side  of  the  forehead, 
also  a  stab  into  the  body,  though  not  dangerous. 

Who  had  been  near  me,  or  struck  me,  besides 
the  cripple  that  struck  me  with  his  crutch,  I  knew 
not,  nor  do  I  know  to  this  hour ;  but  I  was  terribly 
wounded,  and  lay  bleeding  on  the  ground  some  time, 
till  coming  to  myself  I  got  strength  to  cry  out  for 
help,  and  people  coming  about  me,  I  got  some 
hands  to  carry  me  to  my  lodging,  where  I  lay  by.  It 
was  more  than  two  months  before  I  was  well  enough 
to  go  out  of  doors,  and  when  I  did  go  out,  I  had 
reason  to  believe  that  I  was  waited  for  by  some 
rogues,  who  watched  an  opportunity  to  repeat  the 
injury  I  had  met  with  before. 

This  made  me  very  uneasy,  and  I  resolved  to  get 
myself  out  of  danger  if  possible,  and  to  go  over  to 
France,  or  home,  as  I  called  it,  to  Virginia,  so  to  be 
out  of  the  way  of  villains  and  assassinations  ;  for 
every  time  I  stirred  out  here   I  thought  I  went  in 


Colonel  Jack  3 1 1 

danger  of  my  life ;  and  therefore,  as  before,  I  went 
out  at  night,  thinking  to  be  concealed,  so  now  I 
never  went  out  but  in  open  day,  that  I  might  be 
safe,  and  never  without  one  or  two  servants  to  be 
my  lifeguard. 

{Jack  {who,  by  the  7vay,  had  not  finally  got  rid  of  his 
wife,  but  was  to  be  reconciled  to  her  long  afteriuards) 
improved  considerably  in  his  manner  of  dealijig  with 
the  conjugal  misfortwies  which  stuck  to  him  co?ista?itly, 
and  are  quaintly  celebrated  on  his  title-page.  He 
ran  a  marquis  through  the  body  abroad,  a?id  caned 
a  captain  heartily  at  hojne,  for  misdemeanours  towards 
two  of  his  spouses.  But  he  was  never  either  a  fire- 
eater  or  a  high-fiier ;  and  the  account  of  his  courtship 
of  his  fourth  wife  is  an  inimitable  instance  of  Defoe's 
kindly  and  unconscious  Fhilistinis7?i.) 

My  wife  being  now  dead,  I  knew  not  what  course 
to  take  in  the  world,  and  I  grew  so  disconsolate  and 
discouraged,  that  I  was  next  door  to  being  dis- 
tempered, and  sometimes,  indeed,  I  thought  myself 
a  little  touched  in  my  head.  But  it  proved  nothing 
but  vapours,  and  the  vexation  of  this  affair,  and  in 
about  a  year's  time,  or  thereabouts,  it  wore  off  again. 

I  had  rambled  up  and  down  in  a  most  discon- 
tented unsettled  posture  after  this,  I  say,  about  a 
year,   and   then  I  considered  I  had   three   innocent 


:> 


12  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 


children,  and  I  could  take  no  care  of  them,  and 
that  I  must  either  go  away,  and  leave  them  to  the 
wide  world,  or  settle  here  and  get  somebody  to  look 
after  them,  and  that  better  a  mother-in-law  than  no 
mother,  for  to  live  such  a  wandering  life  it  would 
not  do  ;  so  I  resolved  I  would  marry  as  anything 
offered,  though  it  was  mean,  and  the  meaner  the 
better.  I  concluded  my  next  wife  should  be  only 
taken  as  an  upper  servant,  that  is  to  say,  a  nurse  to 
my  children,  and  housekeeper  to  myself,  '  And  let  her 

be or  honest  woman,'  said  I,  '  as  she  likes  best, 

I  am  resolved  I  will  not  much  concern  myself  about 
that ;'  for  I  was  now  one  desperate,  that  valued  not 
how  things  went. 

In  this  careless,  and  indeed  rash,  foolish  humour, 
I  talked  to  myself  thus  :  '  If  I  marry  an  honest  woman, 
my  children  will  be  taken  care  of;  if  she  be  a  slut, 
and  abuses  me,  as  I  see  everybody  does,  I  will 
kidnap  her  and  send  her  to  Virginia,  to  my  planta- 
tions there,  and  there  she  shall  work  hard  enough,  and 
fare  hard  enough  to  keep  her  chaste,  I'll  warrant  her. 

I  knew  well  enough  at  first  that  these  were  mad 
hair-brained  notions,  and  I  thought  no  more  of  being 
serious  in  them  than  I  thought  of  being  a  man  in  the 
moon :  but  I  know  not  how  it  happened  to  me,  I 
reasoned  and  talked  to  myself  in  this  wild  manner  so 
long,  that  I  brought  myself  to  be  seriously  desperate  ; 
that  is,  to  resolve  upon  another  marriage,  with  all  the 


Colonel  Jack  313 

suppositions  of  unhappiness  that  could  be  imagined 
to  fall  out. 

And  yet  even  this  rash  resolution  of  my  senses 
did  not  come  presently  to  action ;  for  I  was  half  a 
year  after  this  before  I  fixed  upon  anything  ;  at  last, 
as  he  that  seeks  mischief  shall  certainly  find  it,  so  it 
was  with  me.  There  happened  to  be  a  young,  or 
rather,  a  middle-aged  woman  in  the  next  town,  which 
was  but  a  half  mile  off,  who  usually  was  at  my  house, 
and  among  my  children,  every  day  when  the  weather 
was  tolerable ;  and  though  she  came  but  merely  as  a 
neighbour,  and  to  see  us,  yet  she  was  always  helpful 
in  directing  and  ordering  things  for  them,  and  mighty 
handy  about  them,  as  well  before  my  wife  died  as  after. 

Her  father  was  one  that  I  employed  often  to  go 
to  Liverpool,  and  sometimes  to  Whitehaven,  and  do 
business  for  me ;  for  having,  as  it  were,  settled  myself 
in  the  northern  parts  of  England,  I  had  ordered  part 
of  my  effects  to  be  shipped,  as  occasion  of  shipping 
offered,  to  either  of  those  two  towns,  to  which,  the 
war  continuing  very  sharp,  it  was  safer  coming,  as 
to  privateers,  than  about  through  the  Channel  to 
London. 

I  took  a  mighty  fancy  at  last  that  this  girl  would 
answer  my  end,  particularly  that  I  saw  she  was 
mighty  useful  among  the  children ;  so,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  children  loved  her  very  well,  and  I  resolved 
to  love  her  too  ;  flattering  myself  mightily,  that  as  I 


314  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

had  married  two  gentlewomen  and  one  citizen,  and 
they  proved  all  three  naught,  I  should  "now  find 
what  I  wanted  in  an  innocent  country  wench. 

I  took  up  a  world  of  time  in  considering  of  this 
matter ;  indeed  scarce  any  of  my  matches  were  done 
without  very  mature  consideration ;  the  second  was 
the  worst  in  that  article ;  but  in  this,  I  thought  of 
it,  I  believe,  four  months  most  seriously  before  I 
resolved,  and  that  very  prudence  spoiled  the  whole 
thing ;  however,  at  last  being  resolved,  I  took  Mrs. 
Margaret  one  day  as  she  passed  by  my  parlour  door, 
called  her  in,  and  told  her  I  wanted  to  speak  with 
her ;  she  came  readily  in,  but  blushed  mightily  when 
I  bade  her  sit  down  in  a  chair  just  by  me. 

I  used  no  great  ceremony  with  her,  but  told  her 
that  I  had  observed  she  had  been  mighty  kind  to  J 
my  children,  and  was  very  tender  to  them,  and  that 
they  all  loved  her,  and  that  if  she  and  I  could  agree 
about  it,  I  intended  to  make  her  their  mother,  if  she 
was  not  engaged  to  somebody  else.  The  girl  sat 
still,  and  said  never  a  word,  till  I  said  those  words, 
'  if  she  was  not  engaged  to  somebody  else ; '  when 
she  seemed  struck.  However,  I  took  no  notice  of 
it,  other  than  this,  '  Look  ye.  Moggy,'  said  I  (so  they 
call  them  in  the  country),  '  if  you  have  promised 
yourself,  you  must  tell  me.'  For  we  all  knew  that 
a  young  fellow,  a  good  clergyman's  wicked  son,  had 
hung   about   her  a  great  while,   two  or  three   years, 


Colonel  Jack  315 

and  made  love  to  her,  but  could  never  get  the  girl 
in  the  mind,  it  seems,  to  have  him. 

She  knew  I  was  not  ignorant  of  it,  and  therefore, 

after  her  first  surprise  was  over,  she  told  me  Mr. 

had,  as  I  knew,  often  come  after  her,  but  she  had 
never  promised  him  anything,  and  had,  for  several 
years,  refused  him ;  her  father  always  telling  her  that 
he  was  a  wicked  fellow,  and  that  he  would  be  her 
ruin  if  she  had  him. 

'  Well,  Moggy,  then,'  says  I,  '  what  dost  say  to 
me?  art  thou  free  to  make  me  a  wife?'  She* blushed 
and  looked  down  upon  the  ground,  and  would  not 
speak  a  good  while ;  but,  when  I  pressed  her  to  tell 
me,  she  looked  up,  and  said,  she  supposed  I  was 
but  jesting  with  her ;  well,  I  got  over  that,  and  told 
her  I  was  in  very  good  earnest  with  her,  and  I  took 
her  for  a  sober,  honest,  modest  girl,  and,  as  I  said, 
one  that  my  children  loved  mighty  well,  and  I  was 
in  earnest  with  her ;  if  she  would  give  me  her 
consent,  I  would  give  her  my  word  that  I  would 
have  her,  and  we  would  be  married  to-morrow 
morning.  She  looked  up  again  at  that,  and  smiled 
a  little,  and  said,  '  No,  that  was  too  soon  to  say  Yes ;' 
she  hoped  I  would  give  her  some  time  to  consider 
of  it,  and  to  talk  with  her  father  about  it. 

I  told  her  she  needed  not  much  time  to  consider 
about  it ;  but,  however,  I  would  give  her  till  to- 
morrow morning,  which  was  a  great  while.      By  this 


3i6  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

time  I  had  kissed  Moggy  two  or  three  times,  and 
she  began  to  be  freer  with  me ;  and,  when  I  pressed 
her  to  marry  me  the  next  morning,  she  laughed,  and 
told  me  it  was  not  lucky  to  be  married  in  her  old 
clothes. 

I  stopped  her  mouth  presently  with  that,  and  told 
her  she  should  not  be  married  in  her  old  clothes,  for 
I  would  give  her  some  new.  '  Ay,  it  may  be  after- 
wards,' says  Moggy,  and  laughed  again.  '  No,  just 
now,'  says  I,  '  come  along  with  me.  Moggy ; '  so  I 
carried  her  upstairs  into  my  wife's  room  that  was, 
and  showed  her  a  new  morning  gown  of  my  wife's, 
that  she  had  never  worn  above  two  or  three  times, 
and  several  other  fine  things.  '  Look  you  there. 
Moggy,'  says  I,  'there  is  a  wedding-gown  for  you; 
give  me  your  hand  now  that  you  will  have  me 
to-morrow  morning;  and  as  to  your  father,  you 
know  he  has  gone  to  Liverpool  on  my  business, 
but  I  will  answer  for  it  he  shall  not  be  angry  when 
he  comes  home  to  call  his  master  son-in-law,  and  I 
ask  him  no  portion ;  therefore,  give  me  thy  hand  for 
it.  Moggy,'  says  I,  very  merrily  to  her,  and  kissed 
her  again ;  and  the  girl  gave  me  her  hand,  and  very 
pleasantly  too,  and  I  was  mightily  pleased  with  it, 
I  assure  you. 

There  lived  about  three  doors  from  us  an  ancient 
gentleman,  who  passed  for  a  doctor  of  physic,  but 
who  was  really  a  Romish  priest  in  orders,  as  there 


Colonel  Jack  317 

are  many  in  that  part  of  the  country ;  and  in  the 
evening  I  sent  to  speak  with  him.  He  knew  that 
I  understood  his  profession,  and  that  I  had  hved 
in  popish  countries,  and,  in  a  word,  beHeved  me  a 
Roman  too,  for  I  was  such  abroad.  When  he  came 
to  me,  I  told  him  the  occasion  for  which  I  sent  for 
him,  and  that  it  was  to  be  to-morrow  morning;  he 
readily  told  me  if  I  would  come  and  see  him  in  the 
evening,  and  bring  Moggy  with  me,  he  would  marry 
us  in  his  own  study,  and  that  it  was  rather  more 
private  to  do  it  in  the  evening  than  in  the  morning ; 
so  I  called  Moggy  again  to  me,  and  told  her,  since 
she  and  I  had  agreed  the  matter  for  to-morrow,  it 
was  as  well  to  be  done  over  night,  and  told  her  what 
the  doctor  had  said. 

Moggy  blushed  again,  and  said  she  must  go  home 
first,  that  she  could  not  be  ready  before  to-morrow. 
'  Look  ye.  Moggy,'  says  I,  '  you  are  my  wife  now, 
and  you  shall  never  go  away  from  me  a  maid ;  I 
know  what  you  mean,  you  would  go  home  to  shift 
you.  Come,  Moggy,'  says  I,  '  come  along  with  me 
again  upstairs.'  So  I  carried  her  to  a  chest  of  hnen, 
where  were  several  new  shifts  of  my  last  wife's,  which 
she  had  never  worn  at  all,  and  some  that  had  been 
worn. 

'  There  is  a  clean  smock  for  you.  Moggy,'  says  I, 
'  and  to-morrow  you  shall  have  all  the  rest.'  When 
I   had   done   this,   '  Now,    Moggy,'  says   I,   '  go  and 


3i8  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

dress  you ; '  so  I  locked  her  in,  and  went  downstairs. 
'  Knock,'  says  I,  '  when  you  are  dressed.' 

After  some  time.  Moggy  did  not  knock,  but  down 
she  came  into  my  room,  completely  dressed,  for 
there  were  several  other  things  that  I  bade  her  take, 
and  the  clothes  fitted  her  as  if  they  had  been  made 
for  her ;  it  seems  she  shpped  the  lock  back. 

'Well,  Moggy,'  says  I,  'now  you  see  you  shall 
not  be  married  in  your  old  clothes;'  so  I  took  her 
in  my  arms,  and  kissed  her,  and  well  pleased  I  was, 
as  ever  I  was  in  my  life,  or  with  anything  I  ever  did 
in  my  life.  As  soon  as  it  was  dark  Moggy  slipped 
away  beforehand,  as  the  doctor  and  I  had  agreed, 
to  the  old  gentleman's  housekeeper,  and  I  came  in 
about  half  an  hour  after,  and  there  we  were  married 
in  the  doctor's  study,  that  is  to  say,  in  his  oratory, 
or  chapel,  a  little  room  within  his  study,  and  we 
stayed  and  supped  with  him  afterwards. 

When,  after  a  short  stay  more,  I  went  home  first, 
because  I  would  send  the  children  all  to  bed,  and 
the  other  servants  out  of  the  way,  and  Moggy  came 
some  time  after.         *  '•'  -^  %         ^ 

The  next  morning  I  let  all  the  family  know  that 
Moggy  was  my  wife,  and  my  three  children  were 
rejoiced  at  it  to  the  last  degree.  And  now  I  was 
a  married  man  a  fourth  time ;  and,  in  short,  I  was 
really  more  happy  in  this  plain  country  girl,  than 
with  any  of  all  the  wives  I  had  had.      She  was  not 


Colon  el  Jack  3 1 9 

young,  being  about  thirty-three,  but  she  brought  me 
a  son  the  first  year ;  she  was  very  pretty,  well  shaped, 
and  of  a  merry  cheerful  disposition,  but  not  a  beauty  ; 
she  was  an  admirable  family  manager,  loved  my 
former  children,  and  used  them  not  at  all  the  worse 
for  having  some  of  her  own.  In  a  word,  she  made 
me  an  excellent  wife,  but  lived  with  me  but  four 
years,  and  died  of  a  hurt  she  got  of  a  fall  while 
she  was  with  child,  and  in  her  I  had  a  very  great 
loss  indeed. 


V.—'  ROXANA ' 

(Roxana,  or  the  Fortunate  Mistress,  is^  on  the 
whole,  the  least  good  of  Defoe's  7ni?ior  novels,  though 
there  are  good  things  in  it ;  and  it  is  one  of  the  most 
puzzling.  Its  title-page  speaks  of  the  heroine  as  having 
been  known  as  the  Lady  Roxana  '  in  the  time  of 
Charles  the  Second,''  and  there  are  passages  which 
directly  point  to  that  king,  and  to  the  Duke  of  Mon- 
mouth; yet  the  openifig  words  tell  us  that  she  only  came  to 
England  in  1683,  and  the  next  page  that  she  was  then 
but  te7i  years  old.  Moreover,  in  the  latter  part  there  , 
are  huge  episodes  and  digressions  which  square  very  ill 
with  the  rest.  The  opening,  however,  though  not  suit- 
able for  selection  here,  contains  remai'kable  passages,  and 
the  following  extract  is  Defoe  in  his  unmistakable 
vein.  A  very  interesting  parallel,  or  rather  con- 
trast, might  be  drawn  between  Roxana  and  Manon 
Lescaut,  considerably  to  Roxana' s  disadvantage ;  for 
she  is  a  cold-blooded  creature,  the  most  disagreeable  of 
Defoe's  heroines,  without  a  touch  of  the  natural  and 


Roxana  321 

healthy  animalism  which  redeems  Moll  Flanders^  and 
with  much  more  than  Moll's  scheming  and  calculation. 
She  has,  however,  found  favour  in  some  eyes  ;  and  the 
less  edifying  parts  of  her  adventures  have  recently  been 
translated  into  French,  where  they  look  well  e?tough. 
This  extract,  as  I  have  said,  bears  Defoe's  mark 
on  every  line  of  it.  Roxaiia  and  her  maid  Amy  are 
Journeying fro7?t  France,  where,  as  elseivhere,  they  have 
had  adve?ttures  none  too  creditable,  to  Fngland.) 

When  I  passed  in  the  ship  between  Dover  and 
Calais,  and  saw  beloved  England  once  more  under 
my  view;  England,  which  I  counted  my  native 
country,  being  the  place  I  was  bred  up  in,  though 
not  born  there ;  a  strange  kind  of  joy  possessed  my 
mind,  and  I  had  such  a  longing  desire  to  be  there, 
that  I  would  have  given  the  master  of  the  ship  twenty 
pistoles  to  have  stood  over  and  set  me  on  shore  in 
the  Downs ;  and  when  he  told  me  he  could  not  do 
it,  that  is,  that  he  durst  not  do  it,  if  I  would  have 
given  him  a  hundred  pistoles,  I  secretly  wished  that  a 
storm  would  rise  that  might  drive  the  ship  over  to  the 
coast  of  England,  whether  they  would  or  not,  that  I 
might  be  set  on  shore  anywhere  upon  English  ground. 

This  wicked  wish  had  not  been  out  of  my  thoughts 

above  two  or  three  hours,  but  the  master  steering  away 

to  the  north,  as  was  his  course  to  do,  we  lost  sight  of 

land  on  that  side,  and  only  had  the  Flemish  shore  in 

!  Y 


322  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

view  on  our  right  hand,  or,  as  the  seamen  call  it,  the 
starboard  side ;  and  then,  with  the  loss  of  the  sight, 
the  wish  for  landing  in  England  abated,  and  I  con- 
sidered how  foolish  it  was  to  wish  myself  out  of  the 
way  of  my  business ;  that  if  I  had  been  on  shore  in 
England,  I  must  go  back  to  Holland  on  account  of 
my  bills,  which  were  so  considerable,  and  I  having  no 
correspondence  there,  that  I  could  not  have  managed 
it  without  going  myself  But  we  had  not  been  out 
of  sight  of  England  many  hours  before  the  weather 
began  to  change,  the  winds  whistled  and  made  a  noise, 
and  the  seamen  said  to  one  another  that  it  would 
blow  hard  at  night.  It  was  then  about  two  hours 
before  sunset,  and  we  were  passed  by  Dunkirk,  and  I 
think  they  said  we  were  in  sight  of  Ostend ;  but  then 
the  wind  grew  high,  and  the  sea  swelled,  and  all 
things  looked  terrible,  especially  to  us  that  understood 
nothing  but  just  what  we  saw  before  us ;  in  short, 
night  came  on,  and  very  dark  it  was,  the  wind 
freshened,  and  blew  harder  and  harder,  and  about 
two  hours  within  night  it  blew  a  terrible  storm. 

I  was  not  quite  a  stranger  to  the  sea,  having  come 
from  Rochelle  to  England  when  I  was  a  child,  and 
gone  from  London,  by  the  river  Thames,  to  France 
afterward,  as  I  have  said.  But  I  began  to  be 
alarmed  a  little  with  the  terrible  clamour  of  the  men 
over  my  head,  for  I  had  never  been  in  a  storm,  and 
so  had  never  seen  the  like,   or  heard  it ;  and  once 


Roxana  323 

oifering  to  look  out  at  the  door  of  the  steerage,  as 
they  called  it,  it  struck  me  with  such  horror  (the 
darkness,  the  fierceness  of  the  wind,  the  dreadful 
height  of  the  waves,  and  the  hurry  the  Dutch  sailors 
were  in,  whose  language  I  did  not  understand  one 
word  of,  neither  when  they  cursed  nor  when  they 
prayed),  I  say,  all  these  things  together  filled  me  with 
terror,  and,  in  short,  I  began  to  be  very  much 
frighted. 

When  I  was  come  back  into  the  great  cabin,  there 
sat  Amy,  who  was  very  sea-sick,  and  I  had  a  little 
before  given  her  a  sup  of  cordial  waters  to  help  her 
stomach.  When  Amy  saw  me  come  back  and  sit 
down  without  speaking,  for  so  I  did,  she  looked  two 
or  three  times  up  at  me ;  at  last  she  came  running  to 
me  :  '  Dear  madam,'  says  she,  '  what  is  the  matter  ? 
What  makes  you  look  so  pale  ?  Why,  you  an't  well, 
what  is  the  matter?'  I  said  nothing  still,  but  held  up 
my  hands  two  or  three  times.  Amy  doubled  her 
importunities  ;  upon  that  I  said  no  more  but,  '  Step  to 
the  steerage-door,  and  look  out,  as  I  did ; '  so  she  went 
away  immediately,  and  looked  too,  as  I  had  bidden 
her,  but  the  poor  girl  came  back  again  in  the  greatest 
amazement  and  horror  that  ever  I  saw  any  poor 
creature  in,  wringing  her  hands  and  crying  out,  she 
,  was  undone !  she  was  undone !  she  should  be 
I  drowned  !  they  were  all  lost !  Thus  she  ran  about 
I  the  cabin  like  a  mad  thing,   and  as  perfectly  out  of 


324  Defo^s  Minor  Novels 

her  senses  as  any  one  in  such  a  case  could  be  sup- 
posed to  be.  I  was  frighted  myself,  but  when  I  saw 
the  girl  in  such  a  terrible  agony  it  brought  me  a 
little  to  myself,  and  I  began  to  talk  to  her,  and  put 
her  in  a  little  hope.  I  told  her  there  was  many  a 
ship  in  a  storm  that  was  not  cast  away,  and  I  hoped 
we  should  not  be  drowned ;  that  it  was  true  the 
storm  was  very  dreadful,  but  I  did  not  see  that  the 
seamen  were  so  much  concerned  as  we  were ;  and  so 
I  talked  to  her  as  well  as  I  could,  though  my  heart 
was  full  enough  of  it,  as  well  as  Amy's  ;  and  death 
began  to  stare  in  my  face,  ay,  and  something  else  too, 
that  is  to  say,  conscience,  and  my  mind  was  very 
much  disturbed ;  but  I  had  nobody  to  comfort  me. 

But  Amy,  being  in  so  much  worse  a  condition, 
that  is  to  say,  so  much  more  terrified  at  the  storm 
than  I  was,  I  had  something  to  do  to  comfort  her. 
She  was,  as  I  have  said,  like  one  distracted,  and  went 
raving  about  the  cabin,  crying  out  she  was  undone  ! 
undone  !  she  should  be  drowned  !  and  the  like ;  and 
at  last,  the  ship  giving  a  jerk,  by  the  force,  I  suppose, 
of  some  violent  wave,  it  threw  poor  Amy  quite  down, 
for  she  was  weak  enough  before  with  being  sea-sick, 
and  as  it  threw  her  forward,  the  poor  girl  struck  her 
head  against  the  bulk-head,  as  the  seamen  call  it,  of 
the  cabin,  and  laid  her  as  dead  as  a  stone  upon  the 
floor  or  deck ;  that  is  to  say,  she  was  so  to  all 
appearance. 


Roxana  325 

I  cried  out  for  help,  but  it  had  been  all  one  to 
have  cried  out  on  the  top  of  a  mountain,  where  no- 
body had  been  within  five  miles  of  me,  for  the 
seamen  were  so  engaged,  and  made  so  much  noise, 
that  nobody  heard  me  or  came  near  me.  I  opened 
the  great  cabin  door,  and  looked  into  the  steerage  to 
cry  for  help,  but  there,  to  increase  my  fright,  was  two 
seamen  on  their  knees  at  prayers,  and  only  one  man 
who  steered,  and  he  made  a  groaning  noise  too, 
which  I  took  to  be  saying  his  prayers,  but  it  seems  it 
was  answering  to  those  above,  when  they  called  to 
him  to  tell  him  which  way  to  steer. 

Here  was  no  help  for  me,  or  for  poor  Amy,  and 
there  she  lay  still  so,  and  in  such  a  condition  that  I 
did  not  know  whether  she  was  dead  or  alive.  In  this 
fright  I  went  to  her,  and  lifted  her  a  little  way  up, 
setting  her  on  the  deck,  with  her  back  to  the  boards  of 
the  bulk-head ;  and  I  got  a  little  bottle  out  of  my 
pocket,  and  I  held  it  to  her  nose,  and  rubbed  her 
temples,  and  what  else  I  could  do,  but  still  Amy 
showed  no  signs  of  life,  till  I  felt  for  her  pulse,  but 
could  hardly  distinguish  her  to  be  alive.  However, 
after  a  great  while,  she  began  to  revive,  and  in  about 
half  an  hour  she  came  to  herself,  but  remembered 
nothing  at  first  of  what  had  happened  to  her  for  a 
good  while  more. 

When  she  recovered  more  fully  she  asked  me 
where  she  was  ?     I  told  her  she  was  in  the  ship  yet. 


326  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

but  God  knows  how  long  it  might  be.  'Why, 
madam,'  says  she,  '  is  not  the  storm  over  ? '  '  No, 
no,'  says  I,  'Amy.'  'Why,  madam,'  says  she,  '  it  was 
calm  just  now '  (meaning  when  she  was  in  the  swoon- 
ing fit  occasioned  by  her  fall).  'Calm,  Amy,'  says 
I,  '  'tis  far  from  calm ;  it  may  be  it  will  be  calm  by 
and  by,  when  we  are  all  drowned  and  gone  to 
heaven.' 

'  Heaven,  madam  ! '  says  she,  '  what  makes  you 
talk  so  ?  Heaven  !  I  go  to  heaven  !  No,  no,  if  I  am 
drowned  I  am  damned  !  Don't  you  know  what  a 
wicked   creature   I   have  been  ?  *         *  * 

*  *  *  J  \x2c\iQ  lived  a  wretched  abominable 
life  of  vice  and  wickedness  for  fourteen  years.  O 
madam,  you  know  it,  and  God  knows  it,  and,  now  I 
am  to  die  \  to  be  drowned  !  Oh  !  what  will  become 
of  me  !  I  am  undone  for  ever  !  ay,  madam,  for  ever  ! 
to  all  eternity  !  Oh  !  I  am  lost  !  I  am  lost !  if  I  am 
drowned,  I  am  lost  for  ever  ! ' 

All  these,  you  will  easily  suppose,  must  be  so  many 
stabs  into  the  very  soul  of  one  in  my  own  case.  It 
immediately  occurred  to  me,  '  Poor  Amy  !  what  art 
thou  that  I  am  not  ?  What  hast  thou  been  that  I 
have  not  been  ?  Nay,  I  am  guilty  of  my  own  sin 
and  thine  too.'  Then  it  came  to  my  remembrance 
that  I  had  not  only  been  the  same  with  Amy,  but 
that  I  had  been  the  devil's  instrument  to  make  her 
wicked.  %  %  %  %  ^ 


I 


Roxana  327 

*  #  vf  *  vf  * 

that  she  had  but  followed  me,  I  had  been  her  wicked 
example ;  and  I  had  led  her  into  all ;  and  that  as  we 
had  sinned  together,  now  we  were  likely  to  sink 
together. 

All  this  repeated  itself  to  my  thoughts  at  that  very 
moment,  and  every  one  of  Amy's  cries  sounded  thus 
in  my  ears  ;  '  I  am  the  wicked  cause  of  it  all !  I  have 
been  thy  ruin.  Amy  !  I  have  brought  thee  to  this, 
and  now  thou  art  to  suffer  for  the  sin  I  have  enticed 
thee  to  !  and  if  thou  art  lost  for  ever,  what  must  I  be  ? 
what  must  be  my  portion  ? ' 

It  is  true,  this  difference  was  between  us,  that  I 
said  all  these  things  within  myself,  and  sighed  and 
mourned  inwardly ;  but  Amy,  as  her  temper  was  more 
violent,  spoke  aloud,  and  cried,  and  called  out  aloud, 
like  one  in  an  agony. 

I  had  but  small  encouragement  to  give  her,  and 
indeed  could  say  but  very  little,  but  I  got  her  to 
compose  herself  a  httle,  and  not  let  any  of  the  people 
of  the  ship  understand  what  she  meant  or  what  she 
said ;  but  even  in  her  greatest  composure  she 
continued  to  express  herself  with  the  utmost  dread 
and  terror  on  account  of  the  wicked  life  she  had  lived, 
and  crying  out  she  should  be  damned,  and  the  like, 
which  was  very  terrible  to  me,  who  knew  what  con- 
dition I  was  in  myself. 

Upon  these  serious   considerations,   1   was   very 


328  Defoe^s  Minor  Novels 

penitent  too  for  my  former  sins,  and  cried  out,  though 
softly,  two  or  three  times,  '  Lord  have  mercy  upon  me  ! ' 
to  this  I  added  abundance  of  resolutions  of  what  a 
life  I  would  live  if  it  should  please  God  but  to  spare 
my  life  but  this  one  time ;  how  I  would  live  a  single 
and  a  virtuous  life,  and  spend  a  great  deal  of  what  I  had 
thus  wickedly  got  in  acts  of  charity  and  doing  good. 

Under  these  dreadful  apprehensions  I  looked  back 
on  the  life  I  had  led  with  the  utmost  contempt  and 
abhorrence.  I  blushed,  and  wondered  at  myself  how 
I  could  act  thus,  how  I  could  divest  myself  of 
modesty  and  honour,  ^  '^  %  ^  % 

and  I  thought  if  ever  it  should  please  God  to  spare 
me  this  one  time  from  death  it  would  not  be  possible 
that  I  should  be  the  same  creature  again. 

Amy  went  further ;  she  prayed,  she  resolved,  she 
vowed  to  lead  a  new  life,  if  God  would  spare  her  but 
this  time.  It  now  began  to  be  daylight,  for  the  storm 
held  all  night  long,  and  it  was  some  comfort  to  see 
the  light  of  another  day,  which  none  of  us  expected ; 
but  the  sea  went  mountains  high,  and  the  noise  of  the 
water  was  as  frightful  to  us  as  the  sight  of  the  waves ; 
nor  was  any  land  to  be  seen,  nor  did  the  seamen 
know  whereabout  they  were.  At  last,  to  our  great 
joy,  they  made  land,  which  was  in  England,  and  on 
the  coast  of  Suffolk ;  and  the  ship  being  in  the  utmost 
distress,  they  ran  for  the  shore  at  all  hazards,  and 
with  great  difficulty  got  into  Harwich,  where  they  were 


Roxana  329 

safe,  as  to  the  danger  of  death  ;  but  the  ship  was  so 
full  of  water,  and  so  much  damaged,  that  if  they  had 
not  laid  her  on  shore  the  same  day,  she  would  have 
sunk  before  night,  according  to  the  opinion  of  the 
seamen,  and  of  the  workmen  on  shore  too,  who  were 
hired  to  assist  them  in  stopping  their  leaks. 

Amy  was  revived  as  soon  as  she  heard  they  had 
espied  land,  and  went  out  upon  the  deck,  but  she 
soon  came  in  again  to  me  :  '  Oh,  madam,'  says  she, 
'  there's  the  land  indeed  to  be  seen.  It  looks  like  a 
ridge  of  clouds,  and  may  be  all  a  cloud  for  aught  I 
know ;  but  if  it  be  land,  'tis  a  great  way  off,  and  the 
sea  is  in  such  a  combustion,  we  shall  all  perish  before 
we  can  reach  it.  'Tis  the  dreadfullest  sight  to  look 
at  the  waves  that  ever  was  seen.  Why,  they  are  as 
high  as  mountains  ;  we  shall  certainly  be  all  swallowed 
up,  for  all  the  land  is  so  near.' 

I  had  conceived  some  hope,  that  if  they  saw  land 
we  should  be  delivered ;  and  I  told  her  she  did  not 
understand  things  of  that  nature ;  that  she  might  be 
sure  if  they  saw  land  they  would  go  directly  towards 
it,  and  would  make  into  some  harbour ;  but  it  was, 
as  Amy  said,  a  frightful  distance  to  it.  The  land 
looked  like  clouds,  and  the  sea  went  as  high  as 
mountains,  so  that  no  hope  appeared  in  the  seeing 
the  land,  but  we  were  in  fear  of  foundering  before  we 
could  reach  it.  This  made  Amy  so  desponding  still ; 
but  as  the  wind,  which  blew  from  the  east,  or  that 


330  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

way,  drove  us  furiously  towards  the  land,  so  when, 
about  half  an  hour  after,  I  stepped  to  the  steerage 
door  and  looked  out,  I  saw  the  land  much  nearer 
than  Amy  represented  it ;  so  I  went  in  and  encouraged 
Amy  again,  and  indeed  was  encouraged  myself 

In  about  an  hour,  or  something  more,  we  see,  to 
our  infinite  satisfaction,  the  open  harbour  of  Harwich, 
and  the  vessel  standing  directly  towards  it,  and  in  a 
few  minutes  more  the  ship  was  in  smooth  water,  to 
our  inexpressible  comfort ;  and  thus  I  had,  though 
against  my  will,  and  contrary  to  my  true  interest, 
what  I  wished  for,  to  be  driven  away  to  England, 
though  it  was  by  a  storm. 

Nor  did  this  incident  do  either  Amy  or  me  much 
service,  for  the  danger  being  over,  the  fears  of  death 
vanished  with  it,  ay,  and  our  fear  of  what  was  beyond 
death  also.  Our  sense  of  the  life  we  had  lived  went 
off,  and  with  our  return  to  life,  our  wicked  taste  of 
life  returned,  and  we  were  both  the  same  as  before, 
if  not  worse.  So  certain  is  it,  that  the  repentance 
which  is  brought  about  by  the  mere  apprehensions  of 
death,  wears  off  as  those  apprehensions  wear  off ;  and 
death-bed  repentance,  or  storm  repentance,  which  is 
much  the  same,  is  seldom  true. 

However,  I  do  not  tell  you  that  this  was  all  at 
once  neither ;  the  fright  we  had  at  sea  lasted  a  little 
while  afterwards,  at  least,  the  impression  was  not  quite 
blown  off  as  soon  as  the  storm  ;  especially  poor  Amy, 


Roxana  331 

as  soon  as  she  set  her  foot  on  shore,  she  fell  flat  upon 
the  ground  and  kissed  it,  and  gave  God  thanks  for 
her  deliverance  from  the  sea;  and  turning  to  me 
when  she  got  up,  '  I  hope,  madam,'  says  she,  '  you 
will  never  go  upon  the  sea  again.' 

I  know  not  what  ailed  me,  not  I ;  but  Amy  was 
much  more  penitent  at  sea,  and  much  more  sensible 
of  her  deliverance  when  she  landed  and  was  safe, 
than  I  was.  I  was  in  a  kind  of  stupidity,  I  know  not 
well  what  to  call  it ;  I  had  a  mind  full  of  horror  in  the 
time  of  the  storm,  and  saw  death  before  me  as  plainly 
as  Amy,  but  my  thoughts  got  no  vent,  as  Amy's  did. 
I  had  a  silent  sullen  kind  of  grief,  which  could  not 
break  out  either  in  words  or  tears,  and  which  was 
therefore  much  the  worse  to  bear. 

I  had  a  terror  upon  me  for  my  wicked  life  past, 
and  firmly  believed  I  was  going  to  the  bottom, 
launching  into  death,  where  I  was  to  give  an  account 
of  all  my  past  actions  ;  and  in  this  state,  and  on  that 
account,  I  looked  back  upon  my  wickedness  with 
abhorrence,  as  I  have  said  above;  but  I  had  no 
sense  of  repentance  from  the  true  motive  of  repent- 
ance ;  I  saw  nothing  of  the  corruption  of  nature,  the 
sin  of  my  life,  as  an  offence  against  God,  as  a  thing 
odious  to  the  holiness  of  His  being,  as  abusing  His 
mercy,  and  despising  His  goodness.  In  short,  I  had 
no  thorough  effectual  repentance,  no  sight  of  my  sins 
in  their  proper  shape,  no  view  of  a   Redeemer,  or 


332  Defoe's  Minor  Novels 

hope  in  Him.  I  had  only  such  a  repentance  as  a 
criminal  has  at  the  place  of  execution,  who  is  sorry, 
not  that  he  has  committed  the  crime,  as  it  is  a  crime, 
but  sorry  that  he  is  to  be  hanged  for  it. 

{The  most  inte7'esting  part  of  the  rest  is  a  long  and 
curious  account  of  a  sple7idid  eiitertaiiiment  which 
Roxana  gives  to  the  King  ( Charles  II.)  and  the  Duke 
of  Monmouth.  The  latter  end  of  the  book  is — owing 
to  the  interpolations^  as  they  most  probably  are,  above 
referred  to — nearly  unreadable,  and  the  bad  ends  to 
which  both  7?iaid  and  mistress  come,  though  sufficiently 
well  deserved,  are  deferred  too  long,  and  brought  on 
ivithout  dramatic  propriety  f) 


THE    END 


Printed  by  R.  &  R.  Clark,  Edinburgh 


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